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THE ILLUMINATED FAITH 

MYSTICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE 
GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN 



IN HARMONY WITH HIGHER SOUL CULTURE AND IN ACCORDANCE 
WITH THE NEW REVELATION 



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By DR. R. SWINBURNE CLYMER 



Copyrighted 1913. All Rights Reserved 



AUTHORIZED TEXT-BOOK OF THE TEMPLE OF ILLUMINATION 



Published by 

THE PHILOSOPHICAL PUBLISHING CO. 

ALLENTOWN, PA. 



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INTRODUCTORY 

**As the lightning eometh out of the East and shineth even 
unto the West, so shall also the coming of the Son of 
Man be." 

Such is the sign of the coming of the Son of Man : man, 
even though having been born as the many are born, born 
of woman and to suffer, yet shall, through the power that is 
within himself, received from the All Father, so live and so 
believe that the Son of God shall be born within him and he 
shall know — know even as Jesus, when he had become the 
Christ, knew; for all men shall so know when they have 
been born again, when they have passed through the Second 
Birth. 

And shall this be so? Listen to one of the Prophets of 
the long ago : 

''We have also a more sure word of prophecy; where unto 
ye do well that ye take heed as unto a light that 
shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the 
day star arise in your hearts. ' ' 

This refers not to a far-off event. It refers not to some 
special incarnation of a special soul; but, my reader, it re- 
fers directly to you, it shows that you, in your carnal mani- 
festation, are like a dark place, the body is full of darkness 
and there is no light therein. But, if you listen to the Voice 
of the Soul, if you listen to the Christ, who is now here, 
now with you, then will you begin to give heed to a light 
that shineth in a dark place, until in good time there will 
be a dawn, the old, corruptible self will give place to the 
new being, and the Light that is within, the Light of the 
Christ, will begin to shine in a dark place, the carnal self, 
and the day star, the Christ, will arise, not only in the ex- 
ternal world, but within your own heart. 

And when this takes place, behold, a Voice will be heard 
from heaven, and this will say to you : ' ' This is my beloved 



4 The Illuminated Faith 

Son in whom I am well pleased." For yon will have be- 
come, in truth, the Son of the living God. 

The mission of the present book is two-fold : 

One of its missions is to give a Spiritual, a truly Mystical 
interpretation to the teachings of one of the most beloved 
disciples of Jesus. The other is, to point a way whereby 
mankind may so live and so believe, that they may, here 
and now, in the present incarnation, come to know the 
Christ at his second coming, that they may reach regenera- 
tion, the perfect state of salvation, for which all men should 
seek. 

Incidently, the mission of the book is, also, to indicate to 
mankind the great work of the Illuminati and its Soul Sci- 
ence, through which all men may become the Sons of the liv- 
ing God, all men thereby may come to know God and may 
be an eye-witness to the coming of the Father in the glory 
of the Holy Fire. 

Finally, we desire to call the student's attention to the 
last two chapters in the book, wherein it is clearly pointed 
out that the crucifixion, and the arising from the tomb, of 
the Master Jesus are realities, and that, according to his 
own teachings and those of others of the old Masters, all 
men may, if they will, so live as to pass through the same 
ordeal. 

Sincerely, 

The Author. 
Thanksgiving Day, 1912. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 



LESSON ONE 

*'Iii the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with 

God, and the Word was God." 
St. John 1 :l-9. 

1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with 

God, and the Word was God. 

The Word, in the sense used here, means everything that 
was. It included the earth, the sea, the sky; for all was 
God. In the beginning, nothing as yet had manifested. 
Everjrthing that was, was in embryo. It was yet to take 
definite shape. 

2. The same was in the beginning with God. 

3. All things were made by him ; and without him was not 

anything made that was made. 

4. In him was life ; and the life was the light of men. 

Life was still a part of the Word ; for it had not yet mani- 
fested in separate beings. It was not yet personified in 
bodies, either of man or of creatures inferior to man. 

5. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness 

comprehended it not. 
Unless man has become illuminated, he does not recognize 
the light within himself — a light which is, in reality, the 
true light. He does recognize the light of the day, because 
that is in direct contrast with the darkness of the night. 
But the true light, which is in himself, he does not recog- 
nize; because, not having become illuminated, he cannot 
comprehend it. 

6. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 
All men who become illuminated are sent from God, be- 
cause they have learned to know God. They know the truth 
as God would have men know it ; and they are able to teach 



6 The Illuminated Faith 

men the truth, and show them the way. Thus, in very 
truth, are they sent from Grod. 

7. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, 

that all men through him might believe. 

When man lives the true life he will reach Illumination ; 
and, when he has reached Illumination, he will live the life 
of an illuminated being. He is then a witness of the Light ; 
for his acts conform to the Light that he has found within 
himself. Through the teachings of such illuminated beings, 
will all men receive instructions ; and, seeing the life led by 
the witness of the Light, they come to believe in the Light 
that is sent by the Father through his sons. 

8. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of 

that Light. 

John represents the personality, the man, the outer be- 
ing, or the shell that is visible to all. The Light is the 
Awakened Soul within man, it is the Illuminated Being, the 
Christos. The Soul can manifest only through the body, 
which is fittingly called the temple of God. John is there- 
fore not the Light, but the representative, or the medium, 
through which the Light can manifest. It is possible for all 
men, like John, to become witnesses of the Father and to 
manifest the Light so that others may see and know God. 

9. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that 

Cometh into the world. 

The Light of Illumination is the only true Light ; for this 
Light can shine, and does shine, through the night as well as 
through the day. It is always present with those who are 
illuminated. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 



LESSON TWO 

^^But as many as received Mm, to them gave he power to 

become the sons of God. ' ' 
St. John 1 :10-12. 

10. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, 

and the world knew him not. 

By God were all things created. He is in the world to- 
day as he was in the long ago ; but the world knows him no 
more in the present day than it knew him in the past. 

Materialistic man can know only the things of the ma- 
terial. Materialism can know nothing whatever of the 
things that are eternal. For this reason the world cannot 
know him. 

Those who have received the Light, those who have 
reached Illumination by living the true life, know him. 
Only through Illumination, through finding the Soul — the 
Christ — can man know him. When Illumination is accom- 
plished, man is no longer of the world, but of the Soul ; be- 
cause he knows the Soul, and has attained Soul Conscious- 
ness. 

11. He came to his own, and his own received him not. 

He came to all his creatures ; but, being blind, they could 
not know him. The blind cannot see the light. The spir- 
itually blind cannot see the divine Light. Only those who 
have been awakened, illuminated, can know him. God 
comes to all today as He came to all in the far past. They 
cannot recognize Him ; because, not having cultivated their 
soulual faculties, they cannot become conscious of Him. 

12. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to 

become the sons of God, even to them that believe on 
his name. 
To live the life indicated by the Divine Law, means "to 



8 The Illuminated Faith 

receive him." In proportion as we live such a life do we 
receive him. As we receive him, we become illuminated, we 
become conscious of the Soul, we find the Christ. Receiving 
him refers not to a definite act, but to a prolonged process. 
In meeting the conditions of this process, we truly become 
the sons of God. Becoming sons of God refers to prolonged 
stages of growth rather than to a specific act. It is the 
privilege of all men to become sons of God. All men have 
free-will to decide what they desire to become. If they 
choose the true life and if they live in harmony with the 
divine standard, they will reach Illumination. Through Il- 
lumination, through Soul development, they become the 
sons of God and become recipients of the power that always 
attends Illumination. 

No longer can man deny that he is potentially the son of 
God. No longer can he admit himself to be a poor, de- 
praved creature; for God himself teaches that, if man will 
receive Him, he wiU have the power to become the son of 
God. 

Man alone is responsible for what he is. God gave him 
the privilege, and still gives him the privilege, to become 
his son. If man refuses to accept this privilege, he alone is 
responsible. 

But no man will believe in him, unless he accepts the 
teachings and lives a life in accordance with the teachings ; 
because the material man can believe only in the material 
world. Darkness can not know the light. For the same 
reason it is impossible for the materialist, the one who is 
not awakened, to believe in his name. 

*'But as many as received him, to them gave he power to 
become sons of God, even to them that believe on his 
name. ' ' 
The same opportunity is open today. All who will, may 

accept. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 



LESSON THREE 

*' Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, 

nor of the will of man, but of God. ' ' 
St. John 1 :13-17. 

13. Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the 

flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 

That which is born only of blood is an animal; for ani- 
mals are bom of blood alone. He who is born of the will of 
the flesh is born in lust and not of God. He who is born of 
the will of man is merely an intellectual being. Only he 
who is born of God, of love, or in love, is truly a man. 

Man may be born of flesh, of blood, and of mind, and still 
not truly be man. But he who is bom of blood, of flesh, 
and of mind, and who was also conceived in love, and who, 
through love, has developed his soulual nature — such a man 
is truly born of God. 

14. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, 

(and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only be- 
gotten of the Father, ) full of grace and truth. 

In this sentence, the Word means the soul that has taken 
on the body of flesh. It is the soul conceived in Love. Such 
a soul is full of glory, and this glory of the soul is like the 
Father. 

Jesus, born in love, was the Word made flesh. Jesus rep- 
resents the soul taking up flesh in order to manifest. He 
was full of grace and truth; because he was born in love 
and in truth. All men, by living the ideal life, may mani- 
fest this same glory. They may have the same power. They 
may be full of grace and of beauty. 

15. John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was 

he of whom I spake. He that cometh after me is 
preferred before me : for he was before me. 



10 The Illuminated Faith 

John knew that, through some one born of woman, the 
glory of the Illuminated Soul would be manifested. 
Through living the true life, John had become partly illumi- 
nated. Therefore he was able to prophesy that one was to 
come who would manifest Illumination of Soul in all its 
glory. 

Jesus, not only born of blood, flesh, and mind, and con- 
ceived in love, but also thoroughly trained in all that was 
conducive to Illumination, became known to John. John 
at once recognized him as a Master, as one who had become 
the son of God, as one who possessed the power of a son of 
God. 

16. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for 

grace. 

All men have potentially received all that Jesus received. 
Therefore all men may have the same power, if they are 
willing to live the Christ-life. If we obey the laws of the 
Father, we will receive grace for grace. As we live the life 
that leads to Illumination, Christhood, or Sonship, we will 
receive the fruits of such a life. All men have received of 
his fulness, all men have the same free-will to choose be- 
tween that which leads to Sonship and that which leads to 
destruction of the soul. 

17. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth 

came by Jesus Christ. 

Moses had received the laws of life ; but it was Jesus who 
manifested Divine Illumination. It was Jesus who showed 
to mankind that Sonship might be attained by all those who 
would live the truth as it had been taught by Moses and the 
prophets. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 11 



LESSON FOUR 

Only he who has reached Illumination and has found the 

Christ, can see the Father. 
St. John 1:18-27. 

18. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten 
Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath de- 
clared him. 

Man, being of the flesh, can neither see nor understand 
the Soul. Only as he heeds the divine decree, ^'Love one 
another," is he given the key that unlocks the door to the 
Temple wherein God dwells. 

As man lives in accordance with the Divine Law of Love, 
does he manifest the characteristics of the Law of Love. 
This manifestation begins in the center of the being; for 
there first arises the impulse to live the true life. Manifes- 
tation necessarily begins within; for it is within our own be- 
ing that God dwells. As growth continues, in time we mani- 
fest the Father in our outward appearance, and in our daily 
conduct. 

But, even with such manifestation as this, we do not yet 
see the Father. Outer manifestation is only a reflection of 
the Father that dwells within the temple. However, as we 
continue to grow more and more like the Father, as we 
cleanse the temple more and more so that the Father may 
dwell therein. Soul Awakening takes place. It is to be em- 
phasized that Soul Awakening is a long-continued process, 
which finds its culmination in Soul Consciousness, or in Il- 
lumination of Soul. Only after maturity of Soul Conscious- 
ness has been reached, can it be truly said that the Soul — 
''the only begotten of the Father" — hath seen Him and 
known Him. 

It is not man that sees the Father; for man of himself 
is nothing. It is the Awakened, the Illumined, Soul that 
can behold the Father "whom no man hath seen." The 



The Illuminated Faith 

Soul, piercing through physical eyes, as into a mirror, can 
behold, face to face", the Father whom no man hath at any 
time seen. 

19. And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent 

priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask, "Who art 
thou? 

20. And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am 

not the Christ. 

Though a great prophet, John had not yet reached Soul 
Consciousness. In his teachings, he had gone no farther 
than to emphasize the mind's power to create. The mighty 
powers and the manifold faculties of the mind John ex- 
pounded to the people. He explained to them how to use 
mental forces in order to free themselves from unsatis- 
factory conditions ; he explained to them how to accept the 
One who was to come after him. But he fearlessly con- 
fessed that he was not the Christ. 

Science of Mind, though a potent factor in life and 
though the means to building of Soul, is not in itself eter- 
nal. However, that which the awakened mind consciously 
builds, or creates, is eternal. 

21. And they asked him. What then? Art thou Elias? 

And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? 
And he answered, No. 

The prophet Elias lived before John. The only way by 
which John could be Elias is, to have been a reincarnation 
of him, or the soul of Elias returned to earth. The ques- 
tions of the people concerning John indicate that reincar- 
nation was not a strange doctrine. Furthermore, it was 
contradicted at no time either by John or by Jesus or by 
any of the Masters. 

John did not say, ''How can I be Elias since he is long 
dead, and passed to the Beyond ? ' ' He simply answered, ' * I 
am not he. ' ' By this simple answer, he admits the possibil- 
ity of Elias 's return to the earth. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 13 

22. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may- 

give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest 
thou of thyself? 

23. He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 

Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the pro- 
phet Esaias. 

The mind, which John the Baptist represents, may be 
great and powerful, it may indeed hold the secret of crea- 
tion; but, until the mind has found the Light, until such 
time as it has received Illumination, it is like ''one in the 
wilderness." It is surrounded with darkness — a darkness 
through which it cannot penetrate. 

Just as soon as awakening takes place, the mind is free 
from darkness, it has come out of the wilderness. More- 
over, through wise direction of its creative faculties, it has 
made "the way straight;" and, through creation of new 
conditions in its own kingdom, it has made possible for the 
Soul to become Conscious, or for the Christ to come forth. 

The awakened mind is "the voice of one crying in the 
wilderness." The awakened mind recognizes that the 
things of the flesh — things of the carnal nature of man — 
are not permanent, or eternal; thus, it desires, it "cries" 
for, better things. 

Through the continual "cry," the continual desire, for 
better things, it builds the Soul; and, in time, the Christ 
comes forth. 

24. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. 

25. And they asked him, and said unto him. Why baptisest 

thou then, if thou be not that Christ, neither that 
prophet ? 

26. John answered them, saying, I baptize with water : but 

there standeth one among you, whom ye know not ; 

27. He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, 

whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. 

Baptism with water refers to mind awakening — that is, 
the awakening of the mind to the higher possibilities of the 



14 The Illuminated Faith 

soulual nature of man, and to the part that mind must play 
in the development of the soulual nature. Thus, it is evi- 
dent that baptism with water — or mind awakening — is 
necessary, before there can be an awakening of the soul. 

Just as long as the mind of man is satisfied with the 
things that give pleasure and contentment to the flesh, just 
that long is his better, higher nature truly asleep, or in a 
dormant, unawakened condition. He may seem to be a suc- 
cess in business or in social or in governmental affairs ; but 
he is not truly awake to the higher interests of his own 
higher nature. 

As he awakens to the fact that his nature requires some- 
thing more than material interests ; as he searches for that 
which will satisfy his higher nature — he is said to be in the 
process of ' ' awakening. ' ' In his search, he finds ' ' the way, 
the truth, and the life" that guides his mind in the con- 
struction, or the building, of the Soul. Then he is said to 
be "baptized with water;" or his mind is awakened; or, to 
express the thought in other words still, his mind has be- 
come the Awakened, or the Illumined, Mind. 

It has become thoroughly awake to its function in the di- 
vine plan — its function of creating such conditions that the 
soulual nature may properly unfold. It has become Il- 
lumined in the sense that it sees clearly "the path" that 
leads to Illumination of Soul, in that it can visualize clearly 
the ideal temple structure of the Immortal Soul. It has an 
intelligent grasp of the principles and the methods that un- 
derlie development of soulual powers. To the mind that is 
truly awakened, so clear is knowledge concerning the prin- 
ciples of Soul Building that he can explain them to others. 

This figure, common in sacred literature, is drawn from 
the statement, ' ' Know ye not that ye are the temples of the 
living God?" The Soul of man is the temple of the living 
God. There is a science of Soul Building, there is a science 
and an art of Soul Architecture. The principles underly- 
ing this science and this art are as exact as those underly- 
ing the construction of a massive stone structure. It stands 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 15 

to reason that the Master Architect must understand in de- 
tail the principles, the laws, the artistic devices of temple 
building. Equally true is it that the mind of man must 
have an intelligent comprehension of the principles, the 
divine laws, and the artistic devices that underlie architec- 
ture of Soul. When the mind has truly awakened to a 
realization of these laws and principles, and is willing to 
assume its rightful place in the divine plan as the master 
architect of the Soul, it has truly become the Awakened, or 
the Illumined, Mind. 

But it is to be distinctly emphasized that awakened, or 
' ' baptized, ' ' mind is not the Christ. Rather is it the ' ^ fore- 
runner of the Christ. ' ' The Christ comes after the awakened 
mind has builded the Soul, or after the awakened mind has, 
in turn, awakened the Soul. After the Soul has truly been 
awakened, the mind of man is as nothing, or is supplanted ; 
for the man whose Soul is awakened, no longer uses the 
mind centered in the head, or in the brain, for the greater 
work of Soul Building and of Soul Illumination; but he 
uses the Mind of the Center — the Great Center upon the Al- 
tar in the temple. 



LESSON FIVE 

When man becomes illuminated, then does the Fire of Il- 
lumination descend upon him like a dove from 
heaven. 

St. John 1 :28-37. 

28. These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, 

where John was baptizing. 

29. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and 

saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away 
the sin of the world. 
Those who have become awakened to the fact that the 
things which belong to the flesh are not eternal, those who 



16 The Illuminated Faith 

have been baptized even by water, or understanding, will at 
once recognize those who have reached Illumination, or 
Christhood. There is the Light of Illumination surround- 
ing these at all times, which can easily be recognized. 

When we have reached Illumination, or the Christhood, 
our sins are taken away ; for, during the transmutation pro- 
cess through which we have gone in order to become illumi- 
nated, we have freed ourselves from past evil. This we did 
by transmuting the evil into good, and by good works and 
constructive thoughts. 

We can then take away the sins of the world, not by for- 
giving them, nor by taking them upon ourselves, but by 
teaching the truth and helping men to travel the right path. 
Only through knowledge can we free men from their evils ; 
for evil is ignorance of the truth and the Divine Law. 

John beheld and recognized the Lamb of Grod. Through 
continual cultivation of his soulual nature, and through 
continual obedience to the Divine Law in the affairs of life, 
he had at last reached Illumination. He beheld the Light, 
which is the Lamb of God. 

30. This is he of whom I said. After me cometh a man which 

is preferred before me ; for he was before me. 

The awakening of the Soul, the Divine Illumination, can 
not come before the awakening of the mind. Unless the 
mind becomes convinced of its darkness, it can not seek the 
light — the light that gives Immortality. 

"For he was before me." If John had referred to the 
physical man, he could not have meant Jesus, because John 
was born before Jesus saw the light of physical day. 

The Christ is always. There never was a time that he 
was not ; for he is of the Father. But man did not always 
know him, and though the Christ was manifest in Jesus, 
man did not know him. 

31. And I knew him not : but that he should be made mani- 

fest in Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with 
water. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 17 

At the time to which John refers, he did not know the 
Christ, he had not become illuminated ; but he was dissatis- 
fied with the attainment he had reached. He had faith that 
there must be something which would bring satisfaction 
and deeper knowledge. And, in order that this something 
might manifest in Israel, or in darkness, he was willing to 
make definite use of the powers of his mind to awaken and 
to stimulate his soulual nature, so that the Christ might 
come forth, or manifest. 

32. And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descend- 

ing from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 

When Soul Awakening took place, when Soul Conscious- 
ness became a reality, there was an influx of light, which 
appeared to him as a dove coming from the skies. 

This is Illumination; and in like manner does it come to 
all those that use the awakened mind for the awakening of 
the Soul. 

When Awakening, or Illumination, has taken place, then 
do we testify of it, or "bear record" — not in words only, 
but in deeds in our relations with men. Perhaps a word of 
warning is needed here, as ofttimes elsewhere : we must re- 
member that the practical things of life are in no wise to be 
severed from the so-called spiritual. The Divine Law per- 
taitis to our relations with men; and it is impossible for the 
habitual recluse, or hermit, to attain the highest estate of 
Soul Consciousness. In other words, the practical dealings 
of human life in relations with others on the social plane 
and the busines plane, and in connection with daily home 
interests — these very things, these very conditions, are the 
means by which Soul Consciousness is to be attained. 

33. And I knew him not : but the one that sent me to bap- 

tize with water, the same said unto me. Upon whom 
thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining 
on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the 
Holy Ghost. 
2 



18 The Illuminated Faith 

Who was it that sent John to teach the truth and the 
power of the mind ? It was none other than his own Awak- 
ened Mind. The Voice that spake to him and bade him do 
these things was the Voice of Conscience; for, when the' 
mind is stimulated to better things, the conscience also be- 
comes aroused and active, and urges one to live a different 
life, and to get away from those things which give not life, 
but death. 

When the Spirit, or the Light of Illumination, descends 
upon anyone, that one is said to be Awakened, or Illumined, 
in Soul ; or, he is said to have attained Soul Consciousness. 
When one has truly attained Consciousness of Soul, he is 
able to baptize with the Holy Ghost ; for the Light, which is 
the Holy Ghost, has descended upon him and belongs to 
him. This Light remains with him; for he has created it 
through his thoughts, his desires, and his deeds for hu- 
manity. 

34. And I saw, and bear record that this is the Son of God. 
After Illumination of Soul takes place, there is no more 

denying of the Father. The Illuminated One sees the Light, 
and knows where the Light is. He knows that it is of the 
Father, and that, through receiving the Light, he has be- 
come the Son of God. 

Can it be denied that man is divine when he has attained 
Illumination? ''Jesus answered them, Is it not written in 
your law, I said. Ye are Gods ? ' ' 

35. Again the next day after John stood, and two of his 

disciples ; 

36. And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith. Behold 

the Lamb of God ! 

What is the difference between saying, "Behold the Lamb 
of God," and saying, "Behold a god?" Illumination, or 
Soul Consciousness, makes a god of man. How great a god 
he will be, depends entirely upon the work that he shall do. 
Greatness is in doing, not in the mere possession of power. 

To the uninitiated, to those who are inexperienced in the 
self-effacement necessary to growth of soul, these statements 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 19 

seem bald and bold and startling. But it must be remem- 
bered that the Illumined One never makes such a claim for 
himself. Again, it must be emphasized that, to realize with- 
in one's own experience the divinity of humanity and the 
possible Godhood of humankind, demands a depth of hu- 
mility and meekness and self-renunciation that transcends 
the imagination even of those untrained in spiritual things. 
Genuineness of humility and meekness, sincerity in efface- 
ment of the limited personal self, must equal in depth the 
seeming transcendant exaltation of a consciousness that 
identifies itself with the Infinite. 

37. And the two disciples heard him speak, and they fol- 
lowed Jesus. 



LESSON SIX 

The man who leads the people from ignorance to light is a 

Messiah to his people. 
St. John 1 :38-51. 

38. Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith 

unto them. What seek ye? They said unto him, 
Eabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted. Master,) 
where dwellest thou ? 

39. He saith unto them. Come and see. They came and saw 

where he dwelt, and abode with him that day : for it 
was about the tenth hour. 

From this it would appear that these two disciples left 
John, the Awakened Mind, and followed the Master, the 
Awakened Soul. 

The awakened mind always seeks the Christ, Illumination 
of Soul; and Illumination comes when no man is aware of 
it. The change of consciousness from the Illumined Mind 
to the Illumined Soul is gradual; but Illumination comes 
in an instant, and when man least expects it. One must 
pass from the awakened mind stage of consciousness to the 



20 The Illuminated Faith 

awakened soul stage; then, one must live in the conscious- 
ness of Soul, instead of in the realm of mental consciousness, 
which has now served its purpose. Mind Consciousness 
must be supplanted by Soul Consciousness. Realization is 
transferred from the intellectual center to the Supreme 
Center in the temple of G-od. 

40. One of the two which heard John speak, and followed 

him, was Andrew, Simon Peter 's brother. 

41. He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto 

him. We have found the Messias, which is, being in- 
terpreted, the Christ. 
If Andrew had not used the awakened mind for the build- 
ing of a Soul, for its Illumination, he could not have recog- 
nized the Christ; for no man can know the Christ except 
the one who finds the Christ. 

The awakened mind had served its purpose, and Andrew 
had become Soul Conscious ; he had attained the conscious- 
ness that recognizes God within the temple. 

42. And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld 

him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona : thou 
shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, a 
Stone. 
A stone or rock is always the same. To build upon a 
rock is to have a firm foundation. In the work of Illumina- 
tion, the foundation stone is obedience, and Simon means 
''to obey." 

43. The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, 

and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me. 
Philip means "one who loves.'' 

44. Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and 

Peter. 
Bethsaida means "the house from which is brought 
forth," and may represent the physical man in which the 
Christ may be brought forth. 



Mystical Inteepretation of St. John 21 

45. Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have 

found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the pro- 
phets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of 
Joseph. 
Nathanael means ''that which is from God." Through 
Love (which is of God), we can, if we will, make the body 
(which is the house of production) bring forth the Christ 
(which is from the Father, from God). 

46. And Nathanael said unto him. Can there any good thing 

come out of Nazareth ? Philip saith unto him. Come 
and see. 

Can any good come out of that which represents the body, 
that which seems to do only with generation (for Nazareth 
means ''the house which produces") ? 

Only when generation, or the principle of generation, is 
used for regeneration, can there come forth that which is to 
live, that which is eternal. 

Jesus, the body of flesh, came forth from the house of pro- 
duction which is Nazareth. But this same Jesus, itself a 
house of production, when living the life of love, or regen- 
eration, will bring forth the Christ, which is from God. 

Out of the body, which seems vile and degraded, must 
come that which is glorious and immortal, just as the lily, 
purest of flowers, has its root in the bed of slime. 

47. Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, 
Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile ! 

Nathanael was free from the darkness that enshrouded 
the Israelites. He was not possessed of the ignorance and 
therefore the self-righteousness of his kind. In him there 
dwelt love which is of God. 

48. Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? 

Jesus answered and said unto him. Before that Philip 

called thee, when thou wast under the flg tree, I saw 

thee. 

He that lives in love, though still following the laws of 

generation, will be known at once by those who have under- 



22 The Illuminated Faith 

standing; for the love in the heart manifests through the 
whole being. None who possess love can conceal it; none 
who possess hate in the heart can conceal it; it manifests 
whether we will or not. 

49. Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou 

art the Son of God ; thou art the King of Israel. 
Love in the heart of Nathanael (that which is from God) 
had accomplished its work and had awakened Soul Con- 
sciousness ; and he knew the Son of God without being told 
by anyone. Illumination always brings knowledge; and 
the greater the Illumination, the greater the knowledge. 

50. Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto 

thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? 
thou shalt see greater things than these. 

Through doing little things, we develop power to do 
greater. "Works begin in faith ; but, as our works show re- 
sults, faith as such is no longer necessary. Faith has given 
way to knowledge; or, faith has become knowledge; and, 
through knowledge, it is possible to do still greater things. 

As we continue in the path of obedience to the Christ 
Ideal, the light of truth illumines our way more and more ; 
the warmth of love gives us more and more fervor ; and the 
chemic quality of a masterful will transmutes more and 
more thoroughly the undesirable tendencies of our natures 
into desirable — and, eventually, if we persevere and remain 
steadfast. Illumination of Soul results. 

51. And he saith unto him. Verily, verily, I say unto you. 

Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of 
God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. 
Heaven is within us, within the temple wherein dwells 
the living God. When the body has become free from ani- 
mal desires, Illumination comes ; and, through Illumination 
of Soul, we find heaven, or the state of peace. 

Heaven is not a place, but a state of being. Before we 
can know heaven, we must cleanse the temple so that it may 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 23 

be a fit dwelling place for God. When God dwells therein, 
we shall see heaven open; for we see the Light therein. 
Unless heaven is open, unless the doors of the temple are 
unsealed and the veil rent in twain, we can not see the Light 
that burns on the Altar in the Temple. 



LESSON SEVEN 

Where there is no mind there can be no Soul, because there 

is nothing wherewith to build the soul. 
St. John 2:1-17. 

1. And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Gali- 

lee ; and the mother of Jesus was there : 

2. And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the mar- 

riage. 

3. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith 

unto him. They have no wine. 

4. Jesus saith unto her. Woman, what have I to do witk 

thee ? Mine hour is not yet come. 
Jesus had nothing to do with material wine at a wedding 
feast where there was giving in marriage. His work was 
to teach the greater marriage, that of the Soul with the 
Father. 

5. His mother saith unto the servants. Whatsoever he saith 

unto you, do it. 
That which the divine laws teach us we must do if we de- 
sire the fruits that come to man through obedience. Unless 
we heed the dictates of the higher teachings, we cannot reap 
the benefits therefrom; rather, we must reap the punish- 
ment that disobedience causes. Whatsoever the Voice With- 
in saith unto you, do it. 

6. And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the 

manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two 
or three firkins apiece. 



24 The Illuminated Faith 

7. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. 

And they filled them up to the brim. 

8. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto 

the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 

9. "When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that 

was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but 
the servants which drew the water knew ; ) the gover- 
nor of the feast called the bridegroom, 

10. And saith unto him. Every man at the beginning doth 

set forth good wine ; and when men have well drunk, 
then that which is worse : but thou hast kept the good 
wine until now. 

Water represents the mind and the mental forces. Wine 
is always a representation of Life, or that which is Spir- 
itual, or that which belongs to the Soul. 

To obey him means to use the mind and the mental forces, 
the thoughts and the will, in such a way as to transmute, to 
draw up, the physical and the mental energies so that they 
become '^wine." Unless we obey the Divine Law, unless 
we do whatsoever the Law of Love and Truth indicates, 
there can be no good results. "The jugs" — that is, our 
body — must be filled, the mind must be whole, or complete ; 
then we must use the mind in such a way as to draw up 
these forces. When we do this according to the Divine 
Law, they — ' ' the waters ' ' — are transmuted into ' ' wine. ' ' In 
other words, the mental forces have been changed into Soul 
forces. This narrative is a beautiful parable of the spiritual 
process of Transmutation. It refers to the true Alchemy, 
or Spiritual Chemistry — the art of transforming undesir- 
able tendencies of character into Christ-like graces of heart. 

The bridegroom is he who has accomplished the work. He 
has wedded. The Soul, through its Illumination, or Awak- 
ening, has become one with the Father; it is become the 
Christ, the Son of God. 

In this work, the mind forces, or "the worse wine," are 
used first in order that "the good wine," or the results of 
transmutation, may be last. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 25 

In the world of sense, the good things are used first, leav- 
ing the worse until men are satiated and no longer have 
keen taste or sense. 

11. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of G-alilee, 

and manifested forth his glory ; and his disciples be- 
lieved on him. 
The Transmutation of evil into good, of the base qualities 
of character into ' ' pure wine, ' ' seems a miracle to those who 
do not understand the principles of transmutation. It can 
be brought about only ''in Galilee;" for Galilee is "the 
place of continuation, ' ' the place of continuing in the work 
until it is accomplished. Transmutation, or Spiritual 
Chemistry, is a long-continued process. 

12. After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his 

mother, and his brethren, and his disciples : and they 
continued there not many days. 

13. And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went 

up to Jerusalem, 
The Passover of the Jews had degenerated into nothing 
more than a feast, something which was not even representa- 
tive, or symbolic, of the true Passover. The true Passover 
means passing from the evils of life, and from evil ways to 
true life and to faithfulness in obeying the Divine Law. 

14. And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep 

and doves, and the changers of money sitting : 
Even the temples of the Jews were used for ignoble pur- 
poses, and not for the symbolic worship of that other Tem- 
ple not made with hands. 

The material temples of the earth are in representation 
of the temples wherein God dwells. A temple is the place of 
prayer where men should go to be taught the Divine Law, 
where they should be shown how to live according to the 
Divine Law, and how, through thus living in harmony with 
the Law, to purify the temple of their own being so that 
God may take up his abode therein. 



26 The Illuminated Faith 

All temples are but symbols of the temple of Man, the 
center of which is the Holy of Holies, wherein is the Altar, 
whereon is the fire of the Vestals, the fire that should never 
be allowed to go out, but that should be kept burning con- 
tinually so that it is ' ' a Light which lighteth every man that 
Cometh into the world. ' ' 

Not only had the Jews lost the meaning of their Passover, 
but they no longer had a knowledge of their own divinity. 
The Father no longer dwelt within them; for they had so 
far degenerated that they did not even recognize the truth 
that their temples represented. 

Instead of being the house of instruction, and symbolic 
of the Divine Temple wherein God dwells, they had become 
houses of trade, the home of money changers. 

15. And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he 

drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and 
the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and 
overthrew the tables ; 

16. And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things 

hence ; make not my Father's house an house of mer- 
chandise. 

As the temple built by man is a symbol of the Temple 
not made by hands, so are ' ' doves ' ' the emblem of truth, of 
light, and of purity. There are forces in man's nature 
which are for the building of the Immortal Soul ; but man 
is prone to use these forces for base and ignoble purposes. 
The doves are symbolic of these forces and energies in 
man's being — forces, pure in themselves, but admitting of 
a wrong, or perverted, use on man's part, or even of being 
thrown away or "sold." Instead of using them for wor- 
ship of the one Father who is in the temple, the Jews were 
making merchandise of them, selling them, or casting them 
aside. 

No man can find the Father unless he cleanses his temple, 
and then sets free the doves — raises the forces, which are 
pure in themselves, up to the Altar, and there presents them 
as gifts to the Father. Only in this way can the transmu- 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 27 

tation, or Passover, take place, so that man may pass from 
man to God ; from carnality to souluality ; from degeneracy 
to Christ-like qualities of character. 

17. And his disciples remembered that it was written, The 
zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. 
Unless the forces given to us by the Father are used for 
the purpose for which they were intended, they become as 
ashes; for the zeal with which they are used for pleasure 
and even profit will destroy them; and there is nothing 
left wherewith to light the Fire upon the Altar whereby 
man may attain Immortality of Soul, and Sonship with the 
Father. 



LESSON EIGHT 

He who lives for the body alone shall find death ; but he who 
uses his body in obedience to the Divine Law shall 
live. 

St. John 2 :18-25. 

18. Then answered the Jews and said unto him. What sign 

showest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these 
things? 
The Jews, like men of the present day, always wanted to 
be shown some man-given authority for every act. Fitness 
for a work was not recognized then any more than it is at 
the present day. In order to teach that which he held as 
truth, man had to show some authority from some other 
man or set of men. In order to heal, he had to have author- 
ity to heal. No matter how truly fitted he was to teach or 
to heal, only man-given authority was recognized. 

19. Jesus answered and said unto them. Destroy this tem- 

ple, and in three days I will raise it up. 



28 The Illuminated Faith 

20. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple 

in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days ? 

21. But he spake of the temple of his body. 

Jesus had reference to himself. He simply wanted to 
tell them that, even if they did destroy him, or rather, if 
they killed him, in three days he would arise again, and that 
the temple would be as complete as before. 

Jesus was taught in the East; and, in the East, things 
have always been looked upon from two sides : the side that 
people generally consider as the only real, and the other 
side — the poetical, or the ethereal, or the Mystical — which is 
the only real, because it is the Immortal aspect of things. 

Besides this, everything has a symbolic counterpart. ^'As 
below, so above ' ' was the Law of Hermes. Consequently, we 
find that the body of man is the only real temple ; for there- 
in we must truly worship the Father, not by words called 
prayer, but by prayer which is true desire, and by deeds 
which have their beginning in true thought. 

Now the temple wherein God truly dwells is symbolized 
by temples of stone where mankind attempts to worship 
God through words of praise. These temples have their 
use and their purposes and are an honor to God when the 
service is an honor to Him. 

Jesus had reference to the real temple, the body of man ; 
but the Jews understood him to mean the temple building 
in which they worshipped. 

In order that the seeker after truth may understand this 
more fully, we will again quote this verse and then follow 
it by 1 Cor. 3 :16-17. 

''But he spake of the temple of his body." 

•'Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the 

Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 
"If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God de- 
stroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple 
ye are. ' ' 
This is an interpretation which no one can gainsay un- 
less the scriptures are denied. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 29 

22. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples 

remembered that he had said this unto them; and 
they believed the scripture, and the word which 
Jesus had said. 

23. Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the 

feast day, many believed in his name, when they 
saw the miracles which he did. 

It is very easy to believe in a man after we see him dis- 
play power; but mere belief, or faith, in him will not give 
us like power. Only as we obey the same laws, and as we 
live the same life, and as we make the same effort, can we 
come into possession of the same power. 

Faith we need to have; for otherwise we will not put 
forth effort. However, faith without work, without effort, 
is dead. It is only through faith accompanied by effort 
that we can hecome, and accomplish, and achieve. 

24. But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because 

he knew all men. 
Having become Illuminated and free from the selfishness 
of the flesh, Jesus could read the hearts of men. His intui- 
tive powers being awakened, he could instantly feel whether 
a man or a woman was sincere. 

25. And needed not that any should testify of man: for 

he knew what was in man. 
Experience is our best teacher. It is only as we know 
the passions, the strength, and the weakness of man, that 
we can truly understand men. For that which is in one 
man is in all men though in a greater or a less degree. 

LESSON NINE 

He who has not been reborn — that is, he who has not at- 
tained Regeneration, or Illumination — cannot know 
God. 

St. John 3 :l-8. 

1. There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, 
a ruler of the Jews : 



30 The Illuminated Faith 

Throughout the Old and the New Testament, great care 
is taken in giving the names of all those who took part in 
the Divine Drama. This is because, in Oriental Poetry, or 
Symbolism, every name had a special meaning; and, when 
understood, this hidden meaning connects the entire Drama. 
Nicodemus means "a man of innocence," or ''free from 
guilty actions ; ' ' and the account fully carries out this idea. 

2. The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him. 

Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from 
God: for no man can do these miracles that thou 
doest, except God be with him. 

3. Jesus answered and said unto him. Verily, verily, I say 

unto thee. Except a man be born again, he cannot see 

the kingdom of God. 
This is identical with his other sayings: ''Except ye be 
converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter 
into the kingdom of heaven. ' ' 

"Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resur- 
rection : on such the second death hath no power. ' ' 

In order to be born again, we must first be converted. To 
be converted, means to free ourselves from the desires of the 
flesh, and to encourage the desires of the heart, or desires 
that belong to the Soul. 

Conversion means ' ' change, ' ' change from a low estate to 
a higher. It cannot mean the change from a higher to the 
lower, that would be retrogression. To have become con- 
verted means that the mind has become awakened to higher 
interests, and has found that the desires of the flesh, ma- 
terial pleasures and works no longer satisfy. To become 
converted means to seek after the Truth that will satisfy 
the soul. To have found ' ' the way, the truth, and the life, ' ' 
by which one may intelligently use the mental powers for 
the higher work — that of regeneration, or Soul Building — 
means conversion. 

But conversion is not the same thing as regeneration, or 
being bom again. Rather is it the path that leads to re- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 31 

birth. To be born again, in the sense of regeneration, refers 
to the process of developing, or building, the Sonl, through 
conscious use of mental powers intelligently applied in that 
specific direction and to that specific end. It refers to the 
great change when the divine spark of soul within man has 
become the Christ Child, when Illumination of Soul has 
taken place. This is being born again ; for it is giving birth 
to Consciousness of Soul, or of the Christ. 

Distinct emphasis must be placed on the fact that this 
does not mean giving birth to the soul ; for the divine spark, 
or soul-germ, has always been within man's nature, though 
in an inert, or sleeping, state. The new birth is the awak- 
ening of the soul into Consciousness as an entity. It is the 
ascent of individual consciousness from the plane of mind 
and mentality to the higher plane of Soul and Souluality. 
It is the process of developing the soul-atom from a nega- 
tive, dormant, potential state into an active, dynamic state 
of individualized consciousness. 

''For I am the resurrection and the life." Rebirth, or 
birth of Soul Consciousness, is to be identified with ''the res- 
urrection and the life. " It is a resurrection from the con- 
dition of death and inertness to "newness of life." The 
Soul, thus brought to newness of life, lives after everything 
else that pertains to man's existence has returned to their 
primitive elements. 

No one can see the kingdom of God, nor know of it, nor 
realize where it is, unless birth of Soul Consciousness has 
taken place. 

4. Nicodemus saith unto him. How can a man be born when 
he is old? Can he enter the second time into his 
mother's womb, and be born ? 
Nicodemus did not understand the meaning of Jesus 's 
words. He thought that Jesus had reference to the body. 

In a sense, it is even true that the body must be reborn ; 
for, before Soul Consciousness, or Illumination, can take 
place, the body, which is the Temple of the living God 
wherein the Soul must find heaven, must be completely 



32 The Illuminated Faith 

changed through holy desires, thoughts, and through a spe- 
cific mode of living. This brings about a rebirth of every 
atom of the body, without the necessity, however, of being 
born again of woman. 

Even this Nicodemus could not understand; for he had 
knowledge only of the one mortal life. 

5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a 
man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot en- 
ter into the kingdom of God. 

In the light of this verse, we must consider man as being 
born three times. The first is when he comes forth into the 
world from the womb of his mother. This is the birth of 
the body, which carries with it the divine spark which is to 
become the Illuminated Soul, or Son of God. 

The second birth, or that of water, is consummated when 
the mind awakens to the fact that it is not all of earth to 
live, and seeks for better things than the mere gratification 
of the material being, or the senses. When man awakens 
to the conviction that his mental faculties, his creative 
forces, are given him for the specific purpose of cultivating 
the soulual nature of his own being; when he accepts this 
as the highest function of mind and mental powers ; and 
when he deliberately, conscientiously, intelligently sets 
about the great work of directing his mental faculties in 
channels of soulual culture and growth — this experience 
and settled purpose and clear conviction is what is meant 
by the second birth, or ''birth of water." This experience 
is elsewhere called Mind Awakening. In other words, when 
man has a clear vision of the wonderful possibilities of his 
own mental, creative faculties specifically directed toward 
interior development, or Soul Building, it is said that his 
mind has become the Awakened, or the Illumined, Mind. 

The third, the real birth, that of the Spirit, is consum- 
mated when the great work of cultivating the soulual nature 
which the mind has previously accepted and entered upon, 
has been accomplished. Through mental activities defi- 
nitely and carefully directed, the awakened mind has made 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 33 

such conditions in its own Thought World, its own Realm of 
Causation, that the soul has passed from a potential, non- 
conscious, non-individualized state of existence into a dy- 
namic, conscious, individualized state of being. The man 
has reached Soul Consciousness. Illumination of Soul has 
taken place. He has attained the Christ Consciousness. It 
is then that he sees God, that he enters into the kingdom of 
heaven; for the resurrection has taken place. Like Jesus, 
he can now say; ''I am he that liveth, and was dead." 

This is the true rebirth ; for it is regeneration, change of 
heart, raising from death to life. 

6. That which is born of flesh is flesh; and that which is 

born of the Spirit is spirit. 

There is the natural body, which is Adam. It is of the 
flesh. It is that which is born of mother earth. 

Then there is that which is born of the Spirit. This can 
come only through regeneration. In germ, it comes from 
the Father originally as a divine spark. It is enveloped in 
the Spirit, which also comes from the Father. Now, it is 
required of man to free this divine spark, or soul-germ, from, 
its envelope, as the butterfly is set free from the cocoon ; or,, 
as the plantlet is set free from the outer shell of the seed. 
This is that which is born of the Spirit; for it has beeik 
carried by the Spirit. 

It is this divine spark from the Father which is sown in 
the natural body; through the activities of the awakened 
mind, from the spiritual body in which it has been en- 
veloped in the chrysalis state, as it were, the divine spark is 
brought forth a Conscious Soul, in the image of the Father, 
an individualized entity, to sit on the right hand of the 
Father. 

7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 



34 The Illuminated Faith 



LESSON TEN 

If ye love the truth that makes us free, we will be willing 
to lay our carnal desires upon the altar and to transmute 
them into the qualities and essences of Illuminated Soul. 
St. John 3:8-18. 

8. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the 

sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it eometh, 
and whither it goeth : so is every one that is born of 
the Spirit. 
We can see manifestations of the Conscious Soul, but we 
may not know where it is unless we ourselves become illumi- 
nated. 

He who has become illuminated, Soul Conscious, or ' ' born 
of th^ Spirit," will do the works of the Father. Man can 
see these works, for they are the material manifestations; 
but he cannot know the power that produces these manifes- 
tations unless he himself has become Soul Conscious. 

To be ' ' born of the Spirit ' ' means to have found the king- 
dom of heaven. Jesus said of this: "Neither shall ye say, 
Lo, here ! or lo, there ! for, behold, the kingdom of God is 
within you." The manifestations of this kingdom others 
may see; but, unless illuminated, they cannot tell whence, 
where, or whither. 

9. Nicodemus answered and said unto him. How can these 

things be ? 

10. Jesus answered and said unto him. Art thou a master 

of Israel and knowest not these things ? 

11. Verily, verily, I say unto thee. We speak that we do 

know, and testify that we have seen ; and ye receive 

not our witness. 
Jesus speaks not alone of himself, but of all those who 
had lived according to the Divine Law, and had become 
Soul Conscious, or Illuminated. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 35 

All these had been witnesses of the resurrection, and had 
beheld the Holy Ghost, as of Fire, descend upon the Altar 
and there light the Flame in the temple of the living God. 
They spake not of things which they merely believed, but 
of things which they knew — things which they had them- 
selves experienced, as indeed all men may experience who 
are willing to live in harmony with the Divine Law and to 
make conscious, deliberate effort to reach Illumination. 

12. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, 

how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things ? 
The man of the earth can comprehend only the things 
that are of the earth; and only he who has himself experi- 
enced Illumination of Soul can comprehend the things of 
the Soul. 

13. And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that 

came down from heaven, even the Son of man which 
is in heaven. 

Even the Son of man cannot enter heaven unless he has 
first become the Son of God through regeneration. The 
divine spark comes from the Father who is in heaven ; but 
this divine spark, which dwells in the Son of man, cannot 
ascend into heaven until it has become the Son of God 
through regeneration. 

Heaven is not a place but a state of being, or conscious- 
ness. This is amply verified throughout the teachings of 
Jesus : ' ' And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when 
the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and 
said. The kingdom of God cometh not with observation. 

"Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, be- 
hold, the kingdom of God is within you. ' ' 

There can be but one interpretation of the divine mys- 
tery — that is, that none can enter the kingdom of heaven 
until they have become enlightened, which means illumi- 
nated, or Soul Conscious; for, through the process that 
brings Soul Consciousness about, the state known as heaven 
is established in the temple of Man. 



36 The Illuminated Faith 

14. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 

even so must the Son of man be lifted up : 
The mystery of the serpent is the process of regenera- 
tion — the act of lifting up the forces within us, and of 
transmuting them into life and love, and eventually lead- 
ing to Illumination. These forces are constructive or de- 
structive, depending on how they are used. If they are used 
for constructive purposes, the result is more life ; but, if the 
serpent is allowed to creep upon the ground, the end is 
death. 

Just as the serpent was lifted up by Moses and brought 
to life, so must the Son of man, the natural man, be lifted 
up through the desires, the thoughts, and the acts that are 
prompted by the Awakened Mind, or the mind '^baptized 
with water." Only as this lifting process takes place can 
man become the Son of God; and no man can enter the 
kingdom of heaven unless he finds the Christ and becomes 
the Son of God. 

15. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but 

have eternal life. 
When we truly believe, we do that which we believe. In 
mere faith there is no life ; but, in the fruits of faith, which 
are brought about by doing the work indicated by faith, 
can we find Immortality, which is eternal life. 

16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only be- 

gotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should 
not perish, but have everlasting life. 

17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the 

world; but that the world through him might be 
saved. 

18. He that believeth on him is not condemned : but he that 

believeth not is condemned already, because he hath 
not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of 
God. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 37 



LESSON ELEVEN 

Only lie who loves the truth will search for the truth. 
St. John 3:19-29. 

19. And this is the condenmation, that light is come into 

the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, 
because their deeds were evil. 

During all ages there have been those, called Messiahs and 
Masters, who came to teach men the truth and the way. 
These teachers, through obedience to the Divine Law, had 
attained Illumination of Soul. They were the light of the 
world, and were ready to teach the truth and to hold out the 
Light to all those that would listen and accept. 

But man's nature has been more animal than divine. 
He loves the pleasures of the flesh; consequently, he does 
those things which will bring him the gratification of the 
carnal senses. Carnal senses and pleasures, being destruc- 
tive, are of darkness and consequently evil. Men are not 
willing to give up the pleasures of the senses. They care 
more for darkness than for light. Therefore, they are slow 
in accepting the teachings of those who understand the true 
doctrine. 

It is for this that they are condemned: having had an 
opportunity to learn *'the truth,'' whereby one becomes free 
from the entanglements of the carnal nature and '*the 
way" whereby carnal desires may be transmuted into di- 
vine passions, and ''the life" whereby one may become a 
child of the Light, men refuse, and follow the way of the 
flesh, which is the way of darkness and of error and of dis- 
satisfaction. 

20. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither 

Cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 
Those who are living the life of the senses do not care for 



38 The Illuminated Faith 

the truth ; for they have no use for it. Their mind is still 
iinawakened, they are in their first birth. 

If the time comes when they are no longer satisfied with 
the pleasures that the senses give ; when they no longer are 
satisfied with a successful, though unjust business life, — 
then, they turn to the light ; and, if the forces which are re- 
quired in order to bring about Illumination are not all used 
up, they will find the light. But, if they have continued 
their evil ways too long, if the serpent has finished its work, 
then Illumination is not possible. 

21. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his 

deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought 
in God. 

When the mind awakens to the fact that it is not all of 
life to live in the flesh; when the mind is ready to admit 
that there are things far more desirable than those which 
the flesh can give to man — then, is the individual beginning 
to love the light. Then will he seek ''the way" that will 
lead him to enlightenment. He will then live the life that 
is in harmony with the Divine Law, and his deeds will be- 
come manifest ; for there is nothing hid which shall not be- 
come known. 

Man is the temple of the living God. The more he seeks 
for the light, the more will his thoughts and his desires in- 
cline toward heavenly interests and purposes. Eventually, 
these thoughts and desires will transmute his whole body, 
and God will be dwelling in the temple, and the Sacred 
Fire, which is the Light, will be on the altar within the 
Holy of H^olies. 

22. After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the 

land of Judaea ; and there he tarried with them, and 
baptized. 

23. And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, 

because there was much water there : and they came, 
and were baptized. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 39 

24. For John was not yet cast into prison. 

25. Then there arose a question between some of John's 

disciples and the Jews about purifying. 

26. And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, 

he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou 
barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all 
men come to him. 

27. John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, 

except it be given him from heaven. 

When things are considered ultimately, it is recognized 
that all man ever receives, he receives from within himself. 
"Except it be given him from heaven," refers to the in- 
terior kingdom of man 's own divine nature. ' ^ To seek first 
the kingdom of heaven," refers likewise to the kingdom of 
infinite resources and manifold possibilities in man's inner 
being. When considered in the light of ultimate analysis, 
all things in man's life, whether good or evil, come from 
within himself. This is what is meant by the saying : ' ' As 
ye sow, so shall ye reap." If our thoughts (and they are 
within us) are of the good, the true, the holy, the beautiful, 
then will things that are good, true, holy, and beautiful 
come to us. If our thoughts are evil, destructive, and of 
darkness, then will the things that come to us savor of dis- 
ease, misery, and death. All that we are, comes from with- 
in our natures. For all our thoughts and our desires are 
within us; and, through them, we create our center of con- 
sciousness; and, through this center of consciousness, in 
large measure, we create our conditions and our environ- 
ment. 

irs is the choice. Ours, to say what we will to be. In 
large degree, we are masters of our own destiny. It is for 
us to choose ' ' the truth, the way, and the life ' ' that will in- 
sure for us not only a heavenly destiny, but a life of service 
to humanity. 

28. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the 

Christ, but that I am sent before him. 



40 The Illuminated Faith 

The awakening of the mind must always come before the 
awakening of Soul can take place; because it is only- 
through the efforts of the awakened mind that Soul Con- 
sciousness can be made possible. 

In like manner, must the teachers of mental forces come, 
and prepare the way and the minds of the people, so that 
they will be prepared to accept the higher doctrine of the 
Soul when it is presented to them. But well it is for the 
one who baptizes with water if he admits that it is not the 
ultimate baptism, that it is not the all. 

29. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom : but the friend 
of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, 
rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: 
this my joy therefore is fulfilled. 

He that has lived according to the Divine Law; he that 
has deliberately made every effort to transmute the base 
and the earthly within his own nature into qualities of Soul ; 
he that, through right use of the Awakened Mind, has at 
last reached Soul Consciousness — such an one is like the 
bridegroom. He has won a bride, and his bride is the Christ. 

Though his friend has not yet won a bride he rejoiceth in 
the good fortune of his friend ; for he knoweth that he also 
can do as his friend has done. He recognizes the voice of 
him who has won his desire, and, in that voice, is his joy 
made complete; for it assures him that he has the same 
opportunity that his friend has had. 

In this one statement, John shows how truly great his 
character was. Though himself a leader of men, he recog- 
nized and acknowledged Jesus to be the greater. He tells 
his followers that Jesus, like the bridegroom, has won a 
higher estate than himself and is therefore superior to him ; 
and, in this knowledge, John openly rejoices. 

In this did he fulfil the Law : ' ' Love thy neighbor as thy- 
self." For all men are our neighbors; and when we love 
them, jealousy and envy cannot creep in. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 41 



LESSON TWELVE 

As consciousness of Soul increases, the work of the mind 

decreases. 
St. John 3:30-36. 

30. He must increase, but I must decrease. 

Before the Christ can manifest himself, it is necessary 
for the mind to awaken to its function in the divine plan 
of life: it must first become convinced that material and 
physical things are not lasting; it must become established 
in the desire for higher and better things; it must be will- 
ing to put forth effort and to use its creative powers in cul- 
tivating attributes and qualities and graces of Soul. Thus, 
seeing its mission, even though it be dimly, the mind is be- 
come ''the Voice in the wilderness." It is John, the fore- 
runner of the Christ. 

Gradually, as the mind, thus aroused to its noble purpose, 
seeks for that which is higher ; as it endeavors to find ' ' the 
Way, the Truth, and the Life ; " as the divine spark becomes 
enlivened in the temple of man 's consciousness ; as, through 
establishing habits of thought and desire in keeping with 
the Christ Ideal, the mind cultivates and encourages quali- 
ties of Soul — as such processes as these continue, the mind, 
as a creative agency, decreases in importance in proportion 
as that which it creates, increases; mind, as an objective 
factor in Soul building, decreases in proportion as it gives 
place to that which it creates and builds — even the Soul. 
When the time comes that the Soul has become fully Con- 
scious and man has found the Christ, the mind has accom- 
plished its allotted task ; and all authority is transferred 
from the intellectual center to the Soul Center. For this 
reason, John said: "He must increase, but I must de- 
crease. ' ' 

Science of Mind corresponds to John the Baptist; it is 
the Voice in the wilderness ; and, if the Voice is true to its 



42 The Illuminated Faith 

message and to its mission, it will gladly give place to that 
which is to follow. Mind itself as creative agency is mortal ; 
while the Soul — that which results from the mind 's creative 
activities — is Immortal. 

If the mind does not give way, or admit its secondary 
place in the divine purpose ; if it claims to be the ultimate, 
then, unlike John, it betrays its trust. In its false claim, 
it is Lucifer — the Star greatest in heaven except the 
Father; and, because of its disobedience in respect to the 
Divine Law, the Law will remove it, and Lucifer shall fall. 

31. He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of 
the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he 
that cometh from heaven is above all. 
The body of man is of the earth, it is earthly. The divine 
spark in man is of the Father, and comes from above. In 
order to understand this saying better, let it be supple- 
mented by statements from Corinthians : 

"It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. 
There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual 
body. 

*'And so it was written. The first man, Adam, was made a 
living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening 
spirit. 

"Howbeit, that was not first which was spiritual, but that 
which is natural ; and afterwards that which is spir- 
itual." 

There is but one visible body — that is, the form of man. 
It is that which comes from the earth and is of the earth. 
But, when the mind awakens, when the Voice cries in the 
wilderness, when John the forerunner of the Christ comes 
and teaches the truth, then is the natural body raised a 
spiritual body. This is a mystery that can not be compre- 
hended by the unillumined mind of man. 

That which comes from heaven is above all things. As 
taught by both John and Jesus, heaven is within man. 
"Within man, within heaven." Man can not know heaven 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 43 

until he has become Soul Conscious, until his center of con- 
sciousness has been transferred from the mind to the soul. 

When Soul Consciousness has taken place, when man has 
become illuminated, then has he raised the natural body in- 
to a spiritual body. Hie is no longer the Son of man but 
the Son of God. 

First comes the natural body ; but this is raised into the 
spiritual body. Through the efforts and the creative activi- 
ties of the awakened mind, through obedience to the teach- 
ings of John, the lower forces, the physical earth body, have 
been raised, or transmuted, into the spiritual, or purified, 
body. 

32. And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; 

and no man receiveth his testimony. 

He whose mind has become awakened and who uses the 
awakened mind in the building of the Immortal Soul will 
"testify" — that is, he will manifest to others by his daily 
life that which he has seen. Through the use of the awak- 
ened mind, he has received the Ineffable Light. He is the 
Son of God. 

But the earth man — the one whose mind is not yet 
awakened to higher planes of thought than the physical — 
will not accept his testimony; for he is blind to spiritual 
things. ' ' Having eyes, they see not. ' ' 

33. He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal 

that God is true. 
Those who are able to receive, to recognize the manifes- 
tation of the Father and to accept the truth, are the ones 
whose minds have become awakened and aroused to eternal 
things. To receive is to accept ; to accept is to make use of ; 
and, as men follow the teachings of John and obey the Di- 
vine Law, they will know that God is true — that he is. 

34. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God : 

for God giveth not the spirit by measure unto him. 
God is not of the flesh, but of the Soul. God can send 



44 The Illuminated Faith 

none to teach ''the "Way, the Truth, and the Life" except 
those who have become awakened. None can teach the 
truth except those who know the truth ; and none can know 
the truth except those who have become awakened. 

Mortality can not manifest Immortality ; but Immortality 
can manifest through the mortal being because it illumi- 
nates and transmutes that which is mortal. 

35. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things 

into his hand. 

To be the Son of Grod is to be like God. To become the 
Son of God gives one all the powers of God, all the Laws of 
God, and all the attributes of God, though in lesser degree. 

God is Love, and Light, and Life. In order to manifest 
the Father that is within our natures, we must manifest 
the qualities of love, light, and life, God being love, when 
we become like him, we also are born in love; and, being 
born in love, we are part of Him. For Love recognizes 
Love and considers nothing apart and separate from God. 

To have become the Sons of God, means not only to have 
become like God, but even to be gods ; for Jesus said to the 
Jews : ' ' Is it not written in your law, I said. Ye are gods ? ' ' 

To whom God would make known what is the riches of 
the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is 
^^ Christ in you, the hope of glory." 

Only those can understand this mystery who have become 
awakened to the fact that the body of man is but the house 
of that which is greater, and have made conscious effort to 
illuminate this house, which is the Temple of the living 
God. But all men who will, may so understand it; for all 
men are gods in potentiality. 

36. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life : and 

he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but 
the wrath of God abideth on him. 
When we believe that it is possible to become the Son of 
God, we accept the Son. When we accept the Son, we will 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 45 

do the work of the Son; and, when we do the work of the 
Son, then do we become the Son. 

Faith alone, no matter how sublime it may be, is not suf- 
ficient. But, when we do, and act, and live according to our 
faith; when we obey the Divine Law; when we work in 
harmony with it; then will we accomplish the works of 
faith, and become the Sons of God. 

In God there is no wrath, nor does He curse us ; but the 
Law is absolute. And he who does not obey the Law will 
not reap the benefits of the Law. Disobedience ends in spir- 
itual death; and death is a curse, it is the punishment of 
disobedience. 



LESSON THIRTEEN 

When we find the Christ within, then have we found the 

living waters; for they give us Immortality. 
St. John 4:1-14. 

1. When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had 

heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples 
than John, 

2. (though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,) 

3. He left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee. 

4. And he must needs go through Samaria. 

Samaria means ' ' that which holds or binds. ' ' In order to 
reach Illumination, man must ''go through" Samaria, or 
the flesh ; or, in other words, he must free himself from the 
desires of the flesh — those things which bind the Soul to 
that which is of the earth, those things which will not give 
rest to the Soul until the Soul has freed itself from them. 
This freedom from the bondage and limitations of the lim- 
ited personal self, the Soul secures through processes of 
transmutation. This was known to the ancients as the sci- 
ence of Alchemy, or transmutation of the base metals of 
character into the pure gold of spirituality. 



46 The Illuminated Faith 

5. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sy- 

char, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave 
to his son Joseph. 

6. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being 

wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and 
it was about the sixth hour. 

7. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water : Jesus 

saith unto her. Give me to drink. 
The woman of Samaria was one who was still bound by 
the flesh, one who had not yet been awakened to the truth, 
one who still drank only the waters of Jacob's well — the 
waters that give life to the physical being only. 

8. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy 

meat.) 

9. Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him. How is it 

that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am 
a woman of Samaria ? for the Jews have no dealings 
with the Samaritans. 

10. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the 

gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee. Give 
me to drink ; thou wouldst have asked of him, and he 
would have given thee living water. 

In order to receive, we must give. There is a divine prin- 
ciple that necessitates our giving before we can receive ; but 
this principle also makes sure provision, conversely, that, 
when we do give, we will be sure of receiving in return, and 
that, furthermore, we will receive that which is worth more 
to us than what we part with. 

Jesus asked for the physical waters to find out whether 
the woman of Samaria was willing to give to one not of her 
people. And, in exchange for this, he was willing to give 
her of those other waters — the waters of Truth — ^which 
would help her to become immortal. 

The Law of reciprocity manifests itself in nature as the 
principle of equal exchange, which means balance. This 
principle was clearly understood by Jesus because he had 
received instruction and training in the Orient, where 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 47 

people would not even accept a present without giving some- 
thing of equal, or greater, value in return. 

The things of the Spirit, or of the Soul, cannot be sold for 
money ; but an exchange must be made for all things. And, 
whether we will or no, we are forced to honor the Law ; for, 
if we do not give freely, the Law itself, through the reac- 
tionary compulsion of circumstances, will exact payment in 
some other way. ^'As thou so west, so shalt thou reap," is 
the divine decree in all things. The principle of reciprocity 
and the Law of Justice are absolute, and hold good in all 
departments of nature, and on all planes of being. 

11. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to 

draw with, and the well is deep : from whence then 
hast thou that living water ? 

12. Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us 

the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, 
and his cattle ? 

13. Jesus answered and said unto her. Whosoever drinketh 

of this water shall thirst again : 

14. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give 

him shall never thirst ; but the water that I shall give 
him shall be in him a well of water springing up into 
everlasting life. 

This water within is the water of Immortality. It is the 
water that has been turned into wine. 

The water of Jacob's well is that which gives strength to 
the physical being. It is the water that may give under- 
standing ; it is the mind that has been awakened. 

The mind that has awakened understands that everything 
of the flesh — the desires, the thoughts, and the acts that 
spring from the flesh — can only end in death. When the 
mind understands this, it begins to search for "the way, 
the truth, and the life," whereby it may free itself from 
the desires of the flesh, which give not life, but death; de- 
sires which, though gratifled once, call again and again, and 
become thirsty continually for the same thing, and must be 
gratified again and again, but are never truly satisfied. 



48 The Illuminated Faith 

As man searches for the way whereby he may free him- 
self from the ever recurring demands of his carnal nature — 
his limited, petty, personal self — ^he finds the way; for he 
who seeks shall find. He learns the principle whereby he 
may change, or transmute, the desires of his lower nature 
into pure and holy desires of heart. He accepts the truth, 
he follows the path, he lives the positive constructive life. 
He begins to drink of the waters offered by Jesus — ^waters 
which spring from the fountain within, from the divine, 
the immortal, part of man 's being. 

Gradually these waters become stronger and stronger; 
while the waters of Jacob 's well, the waters of the mind, are 
becoming changed into the spiritual wine of the true wed- 
ding; and, as this change takes place, the Son of man is 
growing into the Son of God. The waters which satisfied 
the physical being for only a short time, are being trans- 
muted into the best wine which, when drunk once, is always 
present, and man does not thirst again. 

No longer does such an one need to go to the well, no 
longer does he need to seek for theories and strange doc- 
trines ; for he has found the Truth, and the Truth has made 
him free. His Soul has become conscious of the Infinite, 
he has drunk of the waters of Eternal Life. 



LESSON FOURTEEN 

Only he truly worships the Father, who does the will of the 

Father. 
St. John 4:15-24. 

15. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, 
that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. 

She was willing to receive the truth and to follow the 
truth after it was presented to her. 

The vast majority of mankind is seeking for they know 
not what. They seem to want the truth, they do want it; 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 49 

but they are not yet willing to give np those things which 
are of the flesh. They would accept the truth if they were 
allowed, or if it was possible for them to worship both mam- 
mon and the Father. 

Blessed is he who is willing to accept the truth, the living 
waters, when presented to him, and to live the truth. 

16. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come 

hither. 

17. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. 

Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no 
husband : 

18. For thou hast had ^yq husbands; and he whom thou 

now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou 
truly. 

Although the woman of Samaria was an outcast from 
society, Jesus perceived that there was much good in her, 
and that she would recognize and acknowledge the truth 
when placed before her. 

There is far more hope for him who sins and knows that 
he sins than for him who commits wrong and is blinded to 
his wrong doing by self -righteousness. It is far easier for 
the woman, though ostracized from society, to become the 
child of the Father, if she is willing to obey the Divine Law, 
than it is for those, who, though not committing grievous 
wrong, are too self-righteous to make conscious, deliberate 
effort to find the Christ. They know the letter of the Law, 
and believe that faith in the letter will bring salvation. 

Jesus came not to teach those who knew the truth and 
followed the truth, but to teach those who were committing 
all manner of evil because they were ignorant of the truth. 

19. The woman saith unto him. Sir, I perceive that thou 

art a prophet. 

20. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, 

that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to 
worship. 



50 The Illuminated Faith 

21. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour 

Cometh, when ye shall neither worship in this moun- 
tain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 

22. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we wor- 

ship : for salvation is of the Jews. 

Men worship in mountains, buildings, temples, and such 
places as are built of earthly material. Not knowing the 
truth, they believe that these places are more sacred than 
others ; yet they cling to the illusion that the Father, who 
is their God, dwells in some far-off heaven. They believe 
that the praise and the service they give Him, which is but 
from the lips, will satisfy the Father and that He will give 
them salvation in return for this service. 

But the hour cometh, the time will come when they will 
awaken; when they will know that the service which they 
give on the mountain or in some material temple is not ac- 
ceptable to the Father, and that it will not give them salva- 
tion. 

They will awaken to the truth that not what comes from 
the mouth, no matter how beautiful the words, gives man 
salvation, but that, as the mind awakens to the truth and 
begins to understand, we must do like the Father^ in order 
to become like the Father. 

"When this understanding, this awakening of the mind, 
takes place, "the hour" has come. Then will man begin to 
think of the Father and the Father's works. He will seek 
for the method that the Father makes use of in creation, in 
order that he, in daily life, may be true to the same method 
and the same principle. He will learn that, if he wishes to con- 
struct the true temple, the Temple of Solomon, it is neces- 
sary for him not only to have faith, not only to believe in 
the doctrine, not only to praise God with the lips, but that 
it is imperative for him to think constructive thoughts — 
thoughts that will construct, that will huild, the temple. He 
will learn that it is necessary for him to transform his de- 
sires even, into such quality as is conducive to permanency 
in temple structure; that, in his relations with men in the 



Mystical Inteepeetation of St. John 51 

practical affairs of life, he must exemplify the Divine Law 
in its various demands. For only such desires and such 
thoughts and such a life will insure for him a temple where- 
in the Father may take up his abode. 

To do the works of the Father, through a life of true ser- 
vice to others, is the highest worship of the Father. To 
manifest the Law of Love and Good-will and Justice and 
Mercy, in the affairs of life, in every avenue of material in- 
terests — ^this it is to do the works of the Father, this it is to 
build the temple of Solomon. 

When the building of the temple is completed — ^that is, 
when the desires and the thoughts, the motives and the pur- 
poses, have been so transfigured into the Christ Ideal of 
character that the body (which is the temple) has become 
pure, — then. Illumination of Soul takes place. The Christ 
appears, man has become the Son of God. 

23. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true wor- 

shippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in 
truth : for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 

24. God is a Spirit : and they that worship him must wor- 

ship him in spirit and in truth. 

To worship the Father with the lips merely, is not true 
worship of Him. Such worship is simply of the mind — 
mind that has not even become awakened, mind that is still 
ignorant enough to fancy that the all-wise Father may be 
deluded into thinking that we love Him, even though we do 
things contrary to his standards. 

The only way to worship the Father in spirit and in truth 
is to become like Him in character and in deeds. In order 
to become like Him, we must renounce desires of the flesh ; 
we must encourage only the desires that come from the soul. 
The divine spark of the soul, coming from God, is therefore 
like Him; and, when we live according to the Divine Law, 
the soul may be developed into a center of conscious, dy- 
namic activities in harmony with the Law. 
*'Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in 
heaven is perfect. ' ' 



52 The Illuminated Faith 

Time and again has Jesus taught that man is the temple 
of the living God, and that the Father dwells therein. When 
man lives according to the Divine Law, his soul becomes a 
center of divine potencies and activities. His temple is 
then the true temple of Solomon, the temple of Wisdom. 
He that dwelleth therein is the Father. For the temple 
hath been builded for Him ; and the fires, the Vestal Fires, 
or fires of purity, bum upon the altar ; and the incense, the 
prayers of the soul and true praise, rise on high. This is 
true worship of the Father. It is worship in spirit and in 
truth. 



LESSON FIFTEEN 

According to our works, so shall be the wages that we will 

receive. 
St. John 4:25-36. 

25. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, 

which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell 

us all things. 
The Messias, the Christ, can be found only within the 
temple of the living God ; for ' ' he and the Father are one. ' ' 
The Messias comes to all those who first believe in the Di- 
vine Law, and then obey the Divine Law. Through their 
faith and consequent works, do they purify the temple ; they 
cast out the money changers and the sellers of merchandise ; 
they free the temple from the taint of evil thoughts and evil 
desires. According as they do this, does the Christ come 
and tell them all things. For the voice of the Christ is the 
voice of conscience ; and the voice of the purified conscience 
speaks truth. 

26. And Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. 
The woman of Samaria had awakened to the truth. She 

had found the Christ. She had heard the voice of the Christ 
speak to her, and tell her all things. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 53 

The history of the woman of Samaria is the history of a 
soul, as oriental symbolism teaches it. It is the soul, which, 
in the past, has been living according to the desires of the 
flesh; the soul, which, at one time, knew no other desire 
than to gratify the senses. But the mind awakens. She 
goes to the well to draw the waters. She listens to the 
Awakened Mind, and believes that which the Awakened 
Mind, or her own enlightened self, instructs her. Through 
obedience, she frees herself from the desires of the carnal 
self ; she transmutes, or changes, these desires into a longing 
for truth and the higher worship ; through this change, this 
Higher Alchemy, this transmutation, this building, she finds 
the Christ, and knows the Voice that speaks to her. 

27. And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he 
talked with the woman: yet no man said, What 
seekest thou ? or. Why talkest thou with her ? 

Even those who would follow the Christ fear to be seen 
talking with those of ill repute. They fail to consider one 's 
obligation to help those who have fallen by the wayside. 
They forget that it is the duty of the Son of man to help all 
those less fortunate than himself, and that the shepherd is 
not satisfied until every sheep is ^thin the fold. Though 
ninety and nine are safe within the fold, and only one is 
lost in the hills, yet the true shepherd will leave them all, 
and go to seek that which is lost ; and the ninety and nine 
cannot be perfectly happy with the shepherd until the last 
one is also with them. 

It is the same with humanity under the Divine Law. So 
long as there is one soul that dwells in darkness, that long 
is it impossible for the others to dwell in perfect peace. For 
the duty and the mission of the soul that has become illumi- 
nated is to be of service to those not so fortunate. Service 
is the keystone of the most glorious temple that can be dedi- 
cated to the living God. It is the keystone that holds to- 
gether the arch. 

28. The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way 
into the city, and saith to the men. 



54 The Illuminated Faith 

29. Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I 

did : is not this the Christ ? 

When the soul has become awakened, it is like a man that 
remembers all things he has ever done. It is the Book of 
Records ; upon it is written every deed, every thought, and 
every desire of his life. 

The Awakened Soul is the Christ. The Voice of the Christ 
is the awakened and purified conscience. It holds before 
us everything of the past in order that we may free our- 
selves from the past through service to the children of men. 

30. Then they went out of the city, and came unto him. 

31. In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, 

Master, eat. 

32. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know 

not of. 

33. Therefore said the disciples one to another. Hath any 

man brought him ought to eat ? 

34. Jesus saith unto them. My meat is to do the will of him 

that sent me, and to finish his work. 

To do the work of the Father is food to the soul, just as 
material fruits are meat to the body. To work in the vine- 
yard of the Father, gives strength and nourishment to the 
soul. The greater the work that we do, the greater will be 
the benefits to the soul. 

There is material food and there is spiritual food. We 
must give to the body that which belongs to the body, and 
to the soul that which belongs to the soul. The food of the 
soul is found in service, and in obedience to the will of the 
Father ; for, only through sowing, shall there be reaping. 

35. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh 

harvest? behold, I say unto you. Lift up your eyes, 

and look on the fields ; for they are white already to 

harvest. 

There is no special time of sowing, there is no special time 

of reaping. Every day, every hour, every minute is time 

for the sowing. Every minute in the day can we hold a 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 55 

thought that shall bring good to some one. Every second 
can we hold the desire for some good ; and, at all times, can 
we try to help those less fortunate than ourselves. This is 
the sowing. 

The reaping, the time of harvest, is also now. Through 
our thoughts, our desires, and our acts, we plant the seeds 
that will harvest. And, in that which comes to us — in the 
pains and miseries, in the sickness and the suffering, or in 
the joys and in the peace of mind and soul — is the reaping. 

Now is the time to sow, and now is the harvest; and the 
harvest continues as long as the soul lasts. 

36. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth 
fruit unto life eternal : that both he that soweth and 
he that reapeth may rejoice together. 

According to the work that we do, so will be the wages, or 
the rewards, that we shall receive. 

If our work is good, then will the wages be good; and 
not only will these wages be good for us, but the sowing 
will be good to those whom we have helped. If our sowing 
was of poor seeds, then do we reap death instead of life; 
and those whom our sowing affected, will also suffer for the 
time being. But they will be freed from their suffering, for 
it was not of their own sowing. 



LESSON SIXTEEN 

Only when we find the Christ within our own being, can we 

know the Christ in another. 
St. John 4:37-54. 

37. And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and an- 

other reapeth. 

38. I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour : 

other men laboured, and ye are entered into their 
labours. 



56 The Illuminated Faith 

If we live according to the Divine Law, we will use the 
creative forces of the awakened mind to build the temple 
wherein the living God may dwell. In the building of this 
temple, it is necessary for us to remake, or to transmute, the 
body, cleansing it in every way, so as to make it a fit habi- 
tation for the Illumined Soul. We must harbor only such 
thoughts as are in harmony with the Christ Ideal. We 
must entertain only such desires as are pure, holy, and 
noble. We must do those things which are not only for the 
good of ourselves, but for the good of others. 

It follows that, if all the thoughts and all the desires and 
all the acts are for the building of the perfect temple, they 
are, consequently, also, for the good of humanity. 

In this connection, it is well to recall the principle of 
Jesus wherein he said: ''He that looketh upon a woman 
with lust in his heart, hath committed lust already. ' ' This 
indicates that the thought is considered in the same light as 
the deed itself. A principle of nature considers not one 
side only, but every side. Consequently, it has a positive 
and a happy application; and a thought of kindness and 
good-will directed toward another is also like the act. 

Remembering this fact, we can see that, when we hold in 
our heart thoughts of good, of health, or of success toward 
another, we are helping that one just so much ; and, in this 
way, he will reap that which he has really not sown. This 
does not free him from the responsibility of all that he re- 
ceives; but, in this case, he makes returns for what he has 
received after reaping the benefits. In one sense, he reaps 
before he sows. 

In like manner, there may be many who, traveling the 
Path and knowing the Divine Law, are sowing good for us, 
which we shall reap without having sown. 

The converse is true : an evil thought or desire held in the 
heart concerning another may cause him to reap tares, or 
unhappy conditions, which he has really not sown. But, in 
this case, the evil will return to the one who sows, or sends, 
the unhappy thought with twofold strength; and he who 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 57 

has been made to suffer innocently will reap a twofold bene- 
fit in some other way. 

39. And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on 

him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He 

told me all that ever I did. 
The Samaritans knew what manner of a woman she had 
been ; and, knowing this, and seeing the great change in her, 
the manifestations of the Christ, they had to believe in the 
one that could bring about such a change. 

40. So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they be- 

sought him that he would tarry with them: and he 
abode there two days. 

41. And many more believed because of his own word ; 

42. And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because 

of thy saying : for we have heard him ourselves and 
know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of 
the world. 

Like children, men believe in the power of man only when 
they see a manifestation of that power. In the case of the 
Samaritans, they first saw the great change in the woman of 
Samaria. They listened to her confession of the power pos- 
sessed by Jesus; and, through seeing the manifestation of 
this power in her faith, they came to believe in it. 

When they came to know Jesus and to listen to him, when 
they came to obey the Divine Law as he taught it, they came 
to know the Christ; for the Christ can be known only 
through the manifestation of the Christ within the Soul. 

That which is told us we believe, we have faith in it, but 
that which we experience we know to be true. Through 
faith, we come to obey; through obedience, we come to 
know. 

43. Now after two days he departed thence, and went into 

Galilee. 

44. For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet hath no hon- 

our in his own country. 
Men, no matter how great their knowledge, seldom have 



58 The Illuminated Faith 

the confidence of those among whom they were born. No 
matter what their virtues may be, they are sure to have 
some weakness (or what may be considered a weakness, 
though it may not be such) -, and this weakness, or supposed 
weakness, is remembered while his virtues and his powers 
are overlooked. It is for this reason that a man is not 
without honor save in his own country and in his own house- 
hold. 

45. Then when he was come into Galilee, the Galilaeans re- 

ceived him, having seen all things that he did at Je- 
rusalem at the feast: for they also went unto the 
feast. 

46. So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he 

made the water wine. And there was a certain no- 
bleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum. 

47. When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judaea into 

Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he 
would come down, and heal his son : for he was at the 
point of death. 

48. Then said Jesus unto him. Except ye see signs and 

wonders, ye will not believe. 

Men must be shown some signs of power before they will 
believe. This has given rise to all the trickery and mockery 
which has been the lot of mankind for ages past. 

Instead of examining a doctrine carefully and learning 
whether it is one of weakness or of strength, men are in- 
clined to accept any doctrine provided some exhibition of 
power is given. ' ' If thou healest me, then I will believe in 
thee, ' ' might have been the saying of the nobleman ; for that 
was the thought in his heart. 

49. The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my 

child die. 

50. Jesus saith unto him. Go thy way ; thy son liveth. And 

the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken to 
him, and he went his way. 
The spoken word of Jesus had the effect, in this case, of 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 59 

causing the nobleman to believe that his son would be 
healed ; and the faith of the father, like the thought in the 
heart, had the effect of curing the child. 

The same law that determines that he who 'Hhinketh lust 
in his heart, hath already committed lust, ' ' also governs the 
power to cure when faith in a cure is held in the heart. 

This may be for the cure of some illness with which we 
ourselves may be suffering, or for the cure of one whom we 
love. Absolute faith, held in the heart, has power to do all 
things; because it sets into motion laws and vibrations 
which encircle the object upon which the thoughts are cen- 
tered. The thought of man, when held in the heart, is like 
the electrical wave from a powerful battery ; it circles every- 
thing, and is caught by that which is attuned to it. Love in 
the heart of the father for the son had sent the vibrations, 
or rays, of faith direct to the heart of the son. 

51. And as he was now going down, his servants met him, 

and told him, saying. Thy son liveth. 

52. Then enquired he of them the hour when he began to 

amend. And they said unto him. Yesterday at the 
seventh hour the fever left him. 

53. So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the 

which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth : and him- 
self believed, and his whole house. 
It was the same hour in which Jesus had said to him. Thy 
son liveth : and he himself believed it, and his whole house. 
Now he alone was there; his household, or his family, was 
far away, and knew not what was taking place. This must 
then be interpreted to mean that all the attributes and the 
faculties of his being, his mind and his soul, believed that 
the son was cured ; and it was so. The thought and the de- 
sire, which formed the powerful vibrations of health, 
through the love of the father for the son, went directly to 
the son, and raised the low, or diseased, vibrations of his 
organism, which resulted in the cure. 

54. This is again the second miracle that Jesus did, when 

he was come out of Judaea into Galilee. 



60 The Illuminated Faith 



LESSON SEVENTEEN 

St. Jolin 5 :1-16. 

1. After this there was a feast of the Jews ; and Jesus went 

up to Jerusalem. 

2. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, 

which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, hav- 
ing five porches. 
Bethesda means ''the house where mercy can be had by 
those who are unfortunate, " ' ' the house of the merciful. ' ' 

3. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, 

halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. 

4. For an angel went down at a certain season into the 

pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first 
after the troubling of the water stepped in was made 
whole of whatsoever disease he had. 
On account of this legend the pool received the name, 

''place of mercy;" the people believed that the angel came 

down because she took mercy on sufferers. 

5. And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity, 

thirty and eight years. 

6. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now 

a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou 

be made whole ? 
"To be made whole" refers not to the body, but to the 
soul. To be made whole means to be made whole, or holy. 
None can become holy except through a life of obedience to 
the Divine Law, through the awakening of the Soul, 
through the cleansing of the body — the temple of the living 
God. When this is accomplished, then does the Soul become 
free ; for it has become conscious of itself and of the Infinite. 

7. The impotent man answered him. Sir, I have no man, 

when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool : 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 61 

but while I am coming, another steppeth down before 
me. 

8. Jesus saith unto him, Eise, take up thy bed, and walk. 

9. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up 

his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the 
sabbath. 

''If ye have faith, all things are possible." Faith, if 
from the heart, casts out all fear. All disease is due to fear, 
it is of the flesh. True faith is from the heart ; and, if true 
faith can be aroused in the heart, it raises the vibrations to 
such an extent that all the lower vibrations — ^heavy clogging 
vibrations — must give way. 

The man had faith in that which Jesus commanded him 
to do. So great was his faith that he did not even question 
whether it was possible for him to rise up and walk. He 
simply obeyed. 

All disease, every affliction of the heart, even all evil, 
indicates a low state of vibrations. They are vibrations of 
the body, and are not of the heart or the soul. 

If the vibrations of the heart are aroused, which are al- 
ways strong, powerful, and rapid, then the vibrations of the 
body must give way ; and the result is a cure. ' ' Thy faith 
hath made thee whole." ''According to thy faith, so be it 
unto thee." 

10. The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured. It is 

the sabbath day : it is not lawful for thee to carry thy 
bed. 

11. He answered them. He that made me whole, the same 

said unto me. Take up thy bed, and walk. 

12. Then asked they him. What man is that which said un- 

to thee, Take up thy bed, and walk ? 

13. And he that was healed wist not who it was : for Jesus 

had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in 
that place. 

14. Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said 

unto him. Behold, thou art made whole : sin no more, 
lest a worse thing come unto thee. 



62 The Illuminated Faith 

This man, through the suffering that he had undergone 
during the thirty and eight years, had expiated the sin for 
which he had been suffering. He had paid the penalty in 
full; and, through suffering, he had become purified, or 
holy, and needed only the divine command to become free 
from the sickness which he suffered for past sins. This is 
seen in the words of Jesus, '^ Behold, thou art made whole." 

But something more was recognized by Jesus ; for he here 
teaches a divine principle. Though the man had sinned be- 
fore, and had suffered for it; though, through this suffer- 
ing, he had become holy and free from the suffering, yet 
Jesus tells him frankly that, if he sins again, a worse thing 
may come to him. Here Jesus plainly teaches that, if we 
sin, if we do wrong, nothing can prevent us from paying 
the penalty of the sin. 

All suffering, all misery, all sickness and pain, is the re- 
sult of living or doing contrary to the Divine Law; and 
whoever does not live in harmony with the Law will be 
made to suffer. 

15. The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, 

which had made him whole. 
How could this man know that it was Jesus ? There was 
no one to tell him, no one who knew him. Through obedi- 
ence to the Law, he had become free from suffering. 
Through suffering, he had become holy ; for, to be free from 
suffering, and to be holy are one and the same thing. 
Through his holiness, he had come to recognize that the 
body of man is Jesus; while the Soul that dwelleth in the 
body, when it has become free (which is to say, when it has 
become Conscious), is the Christ. 

16. And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought 

to slay him, because he had done these things on the 

sabbath day. 
To those who live in the darkness of ignorance, all things 
appear wrong which do not harmonize with established laws. 
These laws may be man-made and in direct conflict with 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 63 

the Divine Law; but, because men recognize them as laws, 
and because it is in the power of men to administer and to 
execute them, it is considered a crime to go contrary to 
established customs and laws. If they say that a person 
must not do a certain thing (even though it be the saving of 
a life), because he has not been given the proper authority 
by an authorized body of men, then, he must not do it — 
this is the severe and unjust standard of unregenerate men 
who worship tradition and custom. 

Such men were the Jews. In large degree, such is man 
today. He dwells in ignorance and in darkness. He knows 
no law but that which man has made. And woe to him 
who knows the Divine Law and would obey it ! Persecution 
will be his lot ! Yet, blessed, thrice blessed, is he who knows 
and obeys the Divine Law ! For knowledge and obedience 
are their own reward. In spite of persecution and of mis- 
understanding, the souj that remains true to the Law of his 
own Being reaps a happy reward. 



LESSON EIGHTEEN 

Obey the Laws of the Father, no matter if men hate you. 

For he that doeth the will of the Father will receive 

reward from the Father. 
St. John 5 :17-23. 

17. But Jesus answered them. My Father worketh hither- 
to, and I work. 

God is not a God of idleness. Were the Universal Law 
to stop for one moment, all things that now exist would 
cease to exist. If the Divine Law is never idle, but working 
continually, then the Divine Law Giver must be ever active, 
ever creating. 

The Father works continually; but his works are works 
of Love and works of Justice and of Mercy. To the Father, 
all days are sabbaths for the sabbath means a day, not of 



64 The Illuminated Faith 

rest, but of doing the Will of the Father. To do the will of 
the Father means to do good; and doing good is never 
wrong, for it is doing that which God does. 

He who knows the Divine Law will do good at all times, 
he ceases to do evil. To him all days are sabbath days ; for 
he does good, or the work of God, on all days. 

That which Jesus did, was that which God does at all 
times. And, though considered by the Jews as the sabbath 
day, he did not break it, for he was doing only that which 
is good ; and it is legitimate to do good at all times and on 
all days. 

The illuminated man lives so that all days are sabbaths, 
or Lord 's days, to him ; for his works are his religion. His 
works are according to his faith. 

18. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because 

he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that 
God was his Father, making himself equal with God. 

When man has become illuminated, when he has found 
the Christ, then he has become the Son of God, and God is 
his Father. ''Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, 
and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" Nothing 
could be plainer than this. 

The Jews knew nothing of the laws of God; they knew 
and recognized only the laws of man. To man-made laws, 
which gave them temporal power, they were true; and, 
though they claimed to be doing the will of God and to 
teach the truth, they were ever ready to destroy any man 
and anything that interfered in the least with their plans 
or their rules, forgetting even the great law, "Thoushalt 
not kill." 

Man that dwells in darkness knows not the light; for, 
knowing only the darkness, he lives and acts according to 
the darkness, and the darkness is great. 

19. Then answered Jesus and said unto them. Verily, verily, 

I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, 
but what he seeth the Father do ; for what things so- 
ever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 65 

Man of himself is nothing. Man as he is, is only from 
the earth, he is earthly. There dwells in him the divine 
spark, which is from the Father, and which may know the 
Father ; but, until this is awakened, man knows nothing and 
has no power except that which the flesh gives him. But, 
if the mind awakens and seeks after wisdom, then gradually 
does the divine spark become aroused within him. Even 
this divine spark is not his own, but comes from the Father, 
and is part of the Father. If he obeys the Divine Law, he 
becomes Soul Conscious, he becomes the Son of God; but 
he can do nothing without the Father, for he is part of the 
Father. Therefore, the Son of God can do nothing without 
the Father ; and that which the Father does, in like manner, 
can the Son do. 

20. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all 

things that himself doeth: and he will shew him 
greater works than these, that ye may marvel. 

As the carnal man loves his offspring and teaches him to 
do the things he himself does, so the Divine Father, who is 
Love Universal, also loves His offspring and teaches him 
to do the things He does. 

As there is a natural man, so is there a Spiritual, or Soul, 
Man. That which is of the body belongs to the body, and 
does the will of the body ; and that which is of the Soul be- 
longs to the Soul, and does the will of the Soul. 

21. For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth 

them : even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. 
That which the Father can do, the Son can do also ; for 
they are as one. Only he who has become truly illuminated, 
is the Son of God, and can know His laws and His power. 

22. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed 

all judgment unto the Son. 
God judges no man. Man has within himself the Son of 
the Father; and the judge that judges, is the conscience. 
The conscience may sleep for a long time; but when man 
5 



66 The Illuminated Faith 

learns the truth and becomes the Son, then does the purified 
and enlightened conscience become his judge. 

The man who sleepeth is like the animal; he is earthly, 
and belongs to the earth. He knows nothing of the Soul 
and even denies the existence of the Soul. Like the animal, 
he has no conscience, and is not judged by the Son. But, 
when he realizes his birthright ; when he seeks to know the 
Father, then, is the Son born, and with the Son is born 
the enlightened conscience, and the Son judges all things. 

23. That all men should honour the Son, even as they hon- 
our the Father. He that honoureth not the Son hon- 
oureth not the Father which hath sent him. 

No man can say that he has faith in the Father, and not 
know the Son. The man who has faith in the Father will 
do the will of the Father, he will seek within himself, he will 
use the mind that he has in order to search for the truth. 
When he finds the truth, he will have found the Divine 
Law. When he has found the Divine Law, he will live it. 
When he lives the Law, then will he become the Son ; and, 
when he has found the Son, he will give honor to the Father, 
for he is the Son of the Father. 

Faith without works is dead. Faith cannot bring man 
to salvation ; but, if he has faith and will do the things that 
faith dictates, then will he come to know and to honor the 
Son, for the Son is within him. 

He who says that he believes in the Father, and does not 
obey Him is a blasphemer. He who obeys the Father does 
not follow the will of the flesh; he does not hate, he does 
not cheat, nor murder, nor commit crime, nor does he har- 
bor unkind surmises and suspicions concerning others; for 
these things are not characteristics of the Illumined Soul. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 67 



LESSON NINETEEN 

Only those who obey the Divine Law and live according to 
the Law will be Immortal. Belief alone can not give 
eternal life. 

St. John 5 :24-34. 

24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my 

word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath ever- 
lasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; 
but is passed from death unto life. 

If we hear the word that gives life and accept it, then 
will we live according to the Divine Law. 

When we do this we no longer listen to the calls of the 
carnal self ; but we seek for the Voice of the Father that is 
within us. Through obedience to the Law, will we eventu- 
ally come to Divine Illumination; and whoever attains Il- 
lumination will have found eternal life. 

When we no longer listen to the desires of the lower self, 
or the fleshly nature, we cease to do those things which 
bring destruction. Hatred, jealousy, cheating, questionable 
business methods, murder under the name of justice in 
wars — such things as these will no longer have our consent. 
We will refuse to obey the commands of the unregenerate, 
personal self. We will do only those things which the en- 
lightened Voice tells us are right. 

This kind of a life does not make one impractical, but 
severely practical. Men must do their duty as men in the 
world. They must be active in the interests of home, com- 
munity, and state. But, in these varied, practical interests 
and activities, they are to be prompted and guided by the 
Law of Justice and Good-will toward man. 

25. Verily, verily, I say unto you. The hour is coming, and 

now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son 
of God : and they that hear shall live. 
^'The dead" are those who live only for the carnal self. 



68 The Illuminated Faith 

They are those who refuse to recognize anything except that 
which they can see and feel. They believe in nothing except 
that which the eyes can behold. They are dead in the self. 

These shall hear the Divine Law ; and, if they listen and 
accept and do, then shall they live. 

Those are dead who deny that man has a Soul ; for they 
recognize only the man of flesh. They are the worshippers 
of ''the beast;" for to them there is nothing except that 
which the senses of the flesh can know and understand. 

26. For as the Father hath life in himself ; so hath he given 

to the Son to have in himself ; 

27. And hath given him authority to execute judgment al- 

so, because he is the Son of man. 

All that which the Father has, the Son has also ; for he 
is become part of the Father. 

The Father dwells in the temple ; for the temple has been 
purified, and made a fit dwelling place for Him. ''Ye are 
the temples of the living God. ' ' 

28. Marvel not at this : for the hour is coming, in the which 

all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 

29. And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto 

the resurrection of life; and they that have done 
evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. 

What is the resurrection? It is the new, or the third, 
birth. The resurrection refers to the time when the soul 
that has been sleeping awakens and knows that it lives. 

It is a coming forth from the grave. When man lives the 
carnal life, the soul is as something dead ; for it is covered 
by the dark and evil flesh, it is in the grave. If man listens 
to the Divine Law, he will gradually throw aside the earth 
and the debris that cover the divine spark; in time, the 
soul will become awakened, it will become conscious. In 
other words, the Soul has arisen; the "resurrection" has 
taken place ; and the man has entered into life. 

But those who persist in disregarding the Divine Law 
cannot awaken to Soul Consciousness. They refuse to free 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 69 

the divine spark from the earthly, or fleshly, grave in which 
it is buried. At the transition called death, the body dis- 
integrates and returns to the elements whence it came; the 
divine spark (unfoldment, or individualization, not having 
begun) is called back to the Infinite whence it came; and 
the man that was, returns ''unto the resurrection of dam- 
nation. ' ' 

He that knows not God (which is to say, he that has not 
lived such a life as will open up Soul Consciousness) is in 
the grave. He is dead to all that is real and lasting. 

30. I can of mine own self do nothing : as I hear, I judge : 

and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine 
own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent 
me. 
The soul has no will of its own, it must receive that which 
is sent unto it. The mind is the creator, and, consequently, 
the center of will force. If the mind wills to do wrong, the 
soul must receive the evil report; or, to state the same 
thought differently, the soul must register the wrong. The 
soul is sent by the Father to receive, and to judge that 
which it receives. It cannot refuse to receive from the 
mind, for the mind is the master and the creator; but the 
soul is obliged to render judgment according to the charac- 
ter of what it receives. 

31. If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. 
The soul cannot change anything. Its mission is not to 

command, but to receive. 

32. There is another that beareth witness of me ; and I know 

that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true. 

33. Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. 
John represents the awakened mind, which always knows 

the truth. When the mind ceased to be satisfied with tem- 
poral, carnal, fleshly interests, it sought to free itself from 
fleshly entanglements and bondages. In order to give up 
its fleshly interests, it must give attention to the Soul, and 
work for its advancement. The mind, thus awakened to 



70 The Illuminated Faith 

conditions higher than those which pertain to the perishable 
self, is the creator and the builder of the Soul, which, when 
it has attained Consciousness as Soul, becomes the Christ, 
is identified with the Son of God, and testifies of the Infi- 
nite. 

The unawakened mind, on the other hand, the mind that 
dwells in darkness, is in bondage to the flesh, or the lower 
nature. Consequently, it can bear witness of nothing ex- 
cept the flesh and the lower nature ; it builds for itself ' ' res- 
urrection of damnation,'* which is the destruction of indi- 
viduality of Soul. 

34. But I receive not testimony from man : but these things 
I say, that ye might be saved. 
The Conscious Soul, the Christ, receives neither testimony 
nor instructions from the mortal, lower self. It can receive 
instruction or enlightenment only from the awakened mind 
— the mind that knows the truth and desires to live the 
truth. If the instructions of the enlightened and purified 
mind are obeyed, the Soul in time becomes Conscious; the 
Son of man becomes the Son of God ; and man ' ' is saved, ' * 
or is become immortal. 



LESSON TWENTY 

Unless man accepts the Christ and lives in the light, he can- 
not have eternal life. 
St. John 5 :35-47. 

35. He was a burning and a shining light : and ye were will- 

ing for a season to rejoice in his light. 

36. But I have greater witness than that of John: for the 

works which the Father hath given me to finish, the 
same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the 
Father hath sent me. 
John taught the power of the awakened mind in the find- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 71 

ing of the Christ. John taught the power that the coming 
Christ would possess. 

But Jesus manifested the Christ. Not only did he confess 
the Christ, and preach concerning him and the power he 
possessed, but he made use of the power in his ministry. Not 
only did he confess the Father, but he manifested the 
Father. He went about doing the works of the Father, 
and teaching men that, if they would have faith and live the 
life, they also might become the Sons of God. 

37. And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne 

witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at 
any time, nor seen his shape. 

38. And ye have not his word abiding in you : for whom he 

hath sent, him ye believe not. 
The carnal man cannot hear the voice of God, nor see 
Him. Only when the mind recognizes the truth that the 
flesh is not all there is of man, and that the desires of the 
flesh will not give peace; only when the enlightened mind 
makes an effort to find out what the true life is — only then, 
is there a chance for man to know God. When the mind 
thus awakens and makes such an effort, then there will be 
' ' an inner urge ' ' which will not give man rest until he seeks 
further and further. As he seeks more and more earnestly, 
the truth will unfold to him more and more clearly. By 
degrees, he will learn to change his thoughts from a dis- 
tinctively selfish trend to those that are all-inclusive and 
constructive. Gradually, greater effort still is made ; until, 
eventually, the mind has established such superior self- 
mastery that it harbors only thoughts that are positive, con- 
structive, upbuilding, and wholesome. The thoughts and 
desires thus being under such masterful control, it becomes 
a comparatively easy matter for the acts, words, and deeds 
to savor only of kindness and good- will toward all creatures. 
As the thoughts and the desires are directed toward the 
higher life and toward unselfish service to humanity, the 
Soul is thus gradually unfolded to a fuller and yet fuller 
Consciousness, until, eventually, ' ' the hour has come ' ' when 



72 The Illuminated Faith 

the Soul has become truly Conscious and Illumined; the 
conscience is fully quickened, and man hears the voice of 
God and sees Him; for he has seen the Light that illumines 
the temple wherein God dwells. This process of disentang- 
ling the soul from the meshes of the lower nature is a slow, 
tedious, long-continued process; it demands superior pati- 
ence and masterful, painstaking effort through prayer, on 
man 's part. 

Unless man believes in those who are sent to teach him, he 
will not accept the teachings ; and, if he does not accept and 
live the true doctrine, the Father cannot abide in him. 

39. Search the scriptures ; for in them ye think ye have eter- 

nal life : and they are they which testify of me. 

In the scriptures, is to be found the Law of Life ; but, in 
mere faith in the letter of the scriptures, there is not life. 

Jesus understood well that men might take only the letter 
of the Law and forget the spirit of it ; therefore, he taught : 
''Ye cannot understand the scriptures, except ye have the 
Spiritual understanding. ' ' 

Spiritual understanding is understanding that comes 
with Illumination. Only the truly illuminated can under- 
stand the inner meaning of the scriptures. 

Some may say this is not just ; for only a very few are 
able thus to understand. But the laws of life are clearly 
stated; and, if man will live the teachings as Jesus gave 
them, instead of merely believing in them, then will he be 
enabled to awaken the mind and the soul. When he is thus 
illuminated, he will have understanding of Soul. Not by 
faith in the letter, but by living according to the Law, can 
man find eternal life. 

40. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life. 
''To come to him" means to give up the life of fleshly 

tendencies, and to follow the kind of life that Jesus was liv- 
ing. It means self-denial in the beginning; and men are 
not naturally fond of self-denial. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 73 

41. I receive not honour from men. 

The world does not honor a man when he begins to live 
according to the Divine Law. He can hardly be considered 
a fit companion for those who take all things lightly, for 
those who consider only the desires of the carnal self. 

42. But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in 

you. 
If we have the love of God in the heart, we care very 
little for the honor that men can give, and still less for their 
opinions. So long as we know that we are living in har- 
mony with the Divine Law, and so long as the Voice within 
tells us that all is well, we are safe and truly satisfied. 

43. I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not : 

if another shall come in his own name, him ye will 
receive. 

Jesus came to teach the Divine Law. He frankly ad- 
mitted that he was about his Father's business, and that 
"the way" he advocated was a "straight and narrow" way. 
For none, would he make the path easy. All have to travel 
the same rough road of self-discipline. Men were not at- 
tracted by such a teaching then, any more than they are 
now, and consequently would not accept his teachings. 

Jesus understood, however, that others would come after 
him — men who also claim to be about their Father's busi- 
ness, but men who really set at naught every Divine Law; 
men who indicate to humanity an easy path to immortality 
and eternal life, a path whereby self-denial and living the 
exalted life are not necessary. Well did Jesus know that 
the false doctrine of "vicarious atonement" and "justifica- 
tion by faith" would be taught "in his name" by men sin- 
cerely claiming to be his followers. 

44. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of an- 

other, and seek not the honour that cometh from God 
only? 
There is but one true honor that can be conferred upon 



74 The Illuminated Faith 

man. That honor is conferred upon him when, through his 
own continued and repeated efforts to observe the Divine 
Law in all things, he has become Soul Conscious, and has 
won Immortality. This is an honor from God; for it can- 
not be conferred upon man until he has so cleansed his body 
from evil that it has become a fit temple for the living God, 
even the Father, to take up His abode therein. 

All honors that men confer are at best temporary and 
perishable. With death of the body, and often before, such 
honors pass away. They are but empty shadows at the very 
best. 

45. Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father : there 

is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye 

trust. 
Jesus knew that he did not need to accuse men of their 
wrong doing; for he well understood that their own hearts 
would be the accuser, and such an accuser as no man can 
contradict. 

46. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me : 

for he wrote of me. 

47. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe 

my words? 
Moses really taught the Divine Law; and, had they be- 
lieved in the Laws that he taught, they would have obeyed 
them ; and, in obeying, they would have found the Christ. 



LESSON TWENTY-ONE 

Christ is the bread of life. He who finds the Christ will 

have found Immortality. 
St. John 6 :l-35. 

1. After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, 

which is the sea of Tiberias. 

2. And a great multitude followed him, because they saw 

his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 75 

3. And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat 

with his disciples. 

4. And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. 

5. When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great com- 

pany come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence 
shall we buy bread, that these may eat. 

6. And this he said to prove him : for he himself knew what 

he would do. 

Jesus did not ask this question because he desired infor- 
mation, but simply to find out what Philip thought. 

Why should he desire to feed them when they had only 
just come there. They could be no more hungry, physically, 
than was Jesus because they had come no farther. 

7. Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread 

is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may 
take a little. 

8. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, 

saith unto him, 

9. There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and 

two small fishes : but what are they among so many ? 

10. And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was 

much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in 
number about five thousand. 

11. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given 

thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the dis- 
ciples to them that were set down; and likewise of 
the fishes as much as they would. 

12. When they were filled, he said unto his disciples. Gather 

up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 

13. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled 

twelve baskets with the fragments of the ^ve barley 
loaves, which remained over and above unto them 
that had eaten. 

14. Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that 

Jesus did, said. This is of a truth that prophet that 
should come into the world. 



76 The Illuminated Faith 

15. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come 

and take him by force, to make him a king, he de- 
parted again into a mountain himself alone. 

* ' By their fruits shall ye know them. ' ' The people whom 
Jesus had taught, had seen some of his works of ministry, 
and came to believe that he possessed still greater power 
than he had displayed. As they were a people in bondage, 
they thought that, by making him their king, he would be 
able to free them from their bondage, and otherwise help 
them without effort on their part. 

They did not yet understand the higher part of his min- 
istry. All they could understand was that he had been able 
to give relief to many who had been suffering. They could 
not understand that his ministry primarily concerned the 
Soul and the principles of Soul Development. 

16. And when even was now come, his disciples went down 

unto the sea, 

17. And entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward 

Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was 
not come to them. 

18. And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew. 

19. So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty 

furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and 
drawing nigh unto the ship : and they were afraid. 

20. But he saith unto them, It is I ; be not afraid. 

21. Then they willingly received him into the ship : and 

immediately the ship was at the land whither they 
went. 

22. The day following, when the people which stood on the 

other side of the sea saw that there was none other 
boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were 
entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples 
into the boat, but that his disciples were gone away 
alone ; 

23. (Howbeit there came other boats from Tiberias nigh 

unto the place where they did eat bread, after that 
the Lord had given thanks : ) 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 77 

24. When the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, 

neither his disciples, they also took shipping, and 
came to Capernaum, seeking for Jesus. 

25. And when they had found him on the other side of the 

sea, they said unto him, Rabbi, when camest thou 
hither? 

26. Jesus answered them and said. Verily, verily, I say un- 

to you. Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, 
but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. 

27. Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that 

meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the 
Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God 
the Father sealed. 

28. Then said they unto him. What shall we do, that we 

might work the works of God ? 

29. Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of 

God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. 

30. They said therefore unto him. What sign shewest thou 

then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost 
thou work ? 

31. Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is writ- 

ten. He gave them bread from heaven to eat. 

32. Then Jesus said unto them. Verily, verily, I say unto 

you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven ; but 
my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 

33. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from 

heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 

34. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this 

bread. 

35. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he 

that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that 

believeth on me shall never thirst. 
The word bread, as used in the Bible, does not refer to 
material food. It is the symbol of the living Christ. He 
who believes in the teachings of Jesus and truly accepts 
them, will live according to these teachings; and he who 
lives according to them will find the Christ. He who finds 
the Christ will have eaten of ' ' the bread of life, ' ' and will 



78 The Illuminated Faith 

nevermore go hungry. The hunger is for wisdom. "When 
the Christ is found, man has found wisdom. He knows the 
truth, he will no longer seek after strange gods ; for he has 
found the Father. 

Fishes, like bread, are emblematical of the life principles, 
and are often used in the scriptures in a symbolic sense. 

The Christ is the Soul. For this reason is he likened to 
that which gives nourishment. He who finds the Christ 
finds nourishment, he finds that which gives him eternal 
life, or Immortality. 



LESSON TWENTY-TWO 

That which comes from heaven — that is, the Soul of man — 

belongs to the Father. 
St. John 6 :36-50. 

36. But I said unto you. That ye also have seen me, and be- 

lieve not. 

37. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and 

him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 
The body of man does not come from the Father because 
it is of the earth, earthly; but the spirit of man (which is 
the life), and the divine spark (which is to become the Con- 
scious Soul) do come from the Father. The Father gives 
life to the body ; and He gives the divine spark to the body 
in care of the spirit. These belong to man to make use of ; 
it is his privilege to use them as he wishes. If he accepts 
the gifts he has received, and will work for Illumination of 
Soul, then is he "accepted" and "in no wise cast out." 

38. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own mill, 

but the will of him that sent me. 
The divine spark, the soul-germ, comes from the Father, 
from heaven. It is sent by the Father not to do the will of 
the flesh, or the carnal man, but to do the will of the Divine. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 79 

Man can, however, do as he wishes ; for he has free-will. If 
he brings his mind into harmony with the divine principle 
dwelling in the divine spark, in time, the soul will attain 
consciousness; then, man becomes the Christ, the Son of 
God. 

39. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that 

of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, 
but should raise it up again at the last day. 

As features of the Divine Law, Jesus taught that the 
Father gave our parents the power to create the body which 
we inhabit ; that He gave life to the body so that it might 
move and think and create and have free-will; that He 
planted within the body the divine spark; that He desires 
us so to use the mind and the body as to ''raise up/' 
awaken, and bring to conscious activity, the divine spark 
planted in our natures, so that we may become His Sons, 
the Christ. 

''The last day" of the flesh is come when the Soul has be- 
come truly conscious, when it has become illuminated ; for 
then the Soul, instead of the fleshly nature, will hold su- 
premacy over our lives. This is the "resurrection," the 
dead come to life. 

40. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one 

which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have 

everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last 

day. 

All men have equal privileges to become the Sons of God. 

In all ages, men have been sent to mankind to teach them 

the Divine Law. These teachers, if they were truly doing 

the work of the Father, were always such as had found the 

Christ; they were therefore the Sons of God. Those who 

believed their teachings and lived according to them, raised 

up the divine spark — that which was as dead, because it 

had no consciousness before — and found everlasting life. 

41. The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am 

the bread which came down from heaven. 



80 The Illuminated Faith 

Truly he was the bread, for he was the life. The body- 
lives only at the expense of the Father; for, as soon as the 
Father withdraws the spirit (which is the life of man), he 
is dead, and there is no life in him. But, if he accepts the 
teachings of the Divine Law, he will eat of ''the bread of 
life "^— that is, he will use his mind to awaken to activity the 
divine spark within himself; and, when this has been 
brought to consciousness, then is he the Son of God, and has 
found eternal life. This bread is therefore come from 
heaven; for it is come from the Father, and the Father 
dwells within the temple, and the temple is heaven. 

42. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, 

whose father and mother we know? how is it then 

that he saith, I came down from heaven ? 

The Jews could only see the body. Jesus did not speak 

of the body, but of the Illuminated Soul within — the divine 

spark which he had brought to consciousness while under 

the training of the Masters in the East. 

43. Jesus therefore answered and said unto them. Murmur 

not among yourselves. 

44. No man can come to me, except the Father which hath 

sent me draw him : and I will raise him up at the last 

day. 
Jesus did not refer to himself personally, but to the di- 
vine spark, or potential divinity, which is within every man. 
No man ' ' can come to the Christ, ' ' nor know the Christ, un- 
less he first frees himself from the flesh, and brings forth 
to conscious individualization the Divine Being which is 
sent from the Father. 

45. It is written in the prophets. And they shall be all 

taught of God. Every man therefore that hath 

heard, and hath learned, of the Father, cometh unto 

me. 

No man can teach another further than to give him the 

Law. If man accepts the Law and lives according to it, 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 81 

then will the Christ within him awaken ; and, as it awakens, 
so will he receive instructions from the Voice of the in- 
dwelling Christ, and instructions from the Father through 
the Soul. We are not to come to Jesus, the flesh of man, 
but to him who is the Christ of our own beings, and who 
dwells within us — within the temple of the living God. 

46. Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which 

is of God, he hath seen the Father. 
Man of flesh can never see the Father; but that part of 
our being which comes from God — the Soul when it is 
awakened — can see the Father. For the Soul is born of the 
Light; and the Father dwells in the Light, which is ''the 
Light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. ' * 

47. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me 

hath everlasting life. 

48. I am that bread of life. 

The Christ is the bread of life ; for, if man seeks for him 
and finds him, then does he partake of the bread of life, and 
become Immortal. 

49. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are 

dead. 
The Jews obeyed only physical laws, the laws of genera- 
tion. They had not found the Christ, nor had they become 
conscious of him. They were in darkness, and darkness is 
death. 

50. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that 

a man may eat thereof and not die. 
Only he shall have immortality who accepts the teachings 
of the Divine Law and lives in harmony with them, and 
makes deliberate effort to find the Christ, and does find him. 
Those who do not obey the Law and who do not find the 
Christ, shall be "dead unto damnation." This is the de- 
cree. The divine fiat has been cast, and neither God nor 
man can change it. 
6 



82 The Illuminated Faith 

All men have equal privileges. All men have the oppor- 
tunity. If they do not accept it, then, at the transition 
called death, the spirit returns to Him that gave it; the 
body returns to earth; and the soul, which has not become 
individualized, returns to the divine storehouse, to be taken 
up by some one who will bring it to Conscious Individuality. 



LESSON TWENTY-THREE 

He who has brought the Soul to Conscious Individuality 

has become a Christ. 
St. John 6:51-71. 

51. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: 

if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever; 

and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I 

will give for the life of the world. 

The divine spark, which came from the Father, and which 

may become the Christ, dwells in every man. But, in order 

that it may become a Conscious Soul, it is necessary for it 

to have food whereby to grow. 

It can receive food only from the body. As the mind be- 
comes awakened to the needs of the immortal nature, man 
will begin to change his thoughts and his desires. Instead 
of thoughts and desires of the flesh and gratification of the 
flesh, he will think of the Inner Being, the true man. In 
proportion as he does this, will he change, or transmute, the 
flesh. As transmutation takes place, the body (which is the 
personality) is changed into the Soul, or the Individuality. 
Thus, did Jesus plainly and clearly teach that man must 
use the flesh and the fleshly nature to nourish the divine 
spark, in order that it may become a Conscious Individu- 
ality. In other words, man must feed the flesh and the 
fleshly nature to the divine spark that it may become the 
Conscious Soul. The lower must be transmuted into the 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 83 

higher ; the natural into the soulual ; the human into the di- 
vine ; the mortal into the immortal. 

All the teachings of the East where Jesus had been 
taught, were in symbolism, that they might easily be under- 
stood by those who were prepared to understand and might 
be veiled from those who were not ready to understand. 
When one holds the key to symbolism, the teachings of 
Jesus are easily comprehended. Understanding of sym- 
bolism is not the result of reasoning and analysis, so much 
as the result of growth and experience in the Christ char- 
acter. We understand spiritual truth in proportion as we 
have become spiritual in our natures. We comprehend the 
Divine Law in proportion as we obey and live the Divine 
Law. True knowledge is the natural, and the inevitable, 
result of becoming. We understand truths pertaining to 
the Soul only in proportion to our own degree of Soul 
growth. 

52. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying. 
How can this man give us his flesh to eat ? 

They did not understand that Jesus was teaching truth 
through the use of symbolism ; that he did not mean to give 
his own body to them, but that they would have to use their 
own bodies and carnal tendencies in the process of trans- 
mutation, or change, of the transitory personality into the 
permanent individuality. They must feed the body to the 
divine spark, as it were, that it might become a living Soul. 
Mortality must be fed to immortality. The lower must give 
its life to the higher. The undesirable must die that the de- 
sirable may have ''newness of life." ''And, that a rose 
may breathe its breath, something must die. ' ' Undesirable 
tendencies of character must be sacrificed — must give their 
life — in order that the desirable may become established in 
one's nature. 

This is a Cosmic Law, ruling throughout the universe: 
life on a higher plane is due to the giving of life on a lower. 
This principle in the transmutation of character is beauti- 
fully illustrated in the transmutation of metals. Here is a 



84 The Illuminated Faith 

piece of rock ; within it are tiny pieces of gold, just as there 
is a tiny spark of the divine nature in each human life. 
The ore, which corresponds to the body, is fed to the flames. 
Through being fed to powerful flames, the earth or crude 
material is burned away, leaving only the sparks of gold 
which have become as one large nugget. 

In similar manner, the crude material of the lower self is 
transmuted into the pure gold of a Christly character. 

53. Then Jesus said unto them. Verily, verily, I say unto 

you, Except ye eat of the flesh of the Son of Man, 
and drink of his blood, ye have no life in you. 
Unless the body, through a process of change, is fed to 
the divine spark, there is no immortality. The life in the 
body of man is not his own. It belongs to the Father. But, 
if man will use this life to change the body (which is the 
Son of man) into qualities of Illumined Soul (which is the 
Son of God), then does he become a Conscious Individu- 
ality. The Conscious Individuality, the Soul, is his own, 
because he himself created it, through his thoughts, his de- 
sires, and his acts, and through effort — oft repeated and 
long continued effort to accomplish soul illumination. 

54. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath 

eternal life ; and I will raise him up at the last day. 
This is clearly explained by the foregoing explanations. 
But the fact should be emphasized that such interpretation 
as this cannot be understood by mere intellectual compre- 
hension. Knowledge that comprehends such principles is 
not an intellectual acquirement, but is the result of spir- 
itual, or soulual, growth. - •* 

55. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink in- 

deed. 

The flesh is the life of the Soul ; therefore, it is well said 

that it is meat. Without the flesh and the blood (for they 

are but the body and the vitality, or the life therein), the 

soul could not manifest ; but, when the divine spark dwells 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 85 

in the body, and when the awakened mind uses the body 
wherewith to bring the soul to consciousness, then is there 
life indeed — even the life that is everlasting to the Individ- 
ualized Soul. 

56. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwell- 

eth in me, and I in him. 
When the flesh has been changed into Soul, and when the 
Christ has been found, then is man the temple of the living 
God, and God dwells therein. 

57. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the 

Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by 
me. 

58. This is that bread which came down from heaven : not 

as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead : he that 
eateth of this bread shall live for ever. 

59. These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in 

Capernaum. 

60. Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard 

this, said. This is an hard saying ; who can hear it ? 
The disciples meant to ask. Who is able to understand it ? 

61. When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples mur- 

mured at it, he said unto them. Doth this offend you ? 
The Son of man ascends when he has become the Son of 
God, or when he has been changed into the Son of G'od; 
for then the twain are as one. 

63. What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up 

where he was before ? 

64. It is the spirit that quickeneth ; the flesh profiteth noth- 

ing : the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, 

and they are life. 
The spirit (which is the life) has become quickened when 
it has been used to transmute, or to change, the fleshly 
nature through the divine spark into a living, dynamic Con- 
scious Soul. It is then that the Father, the Son, and the 
Holy Ghost have become one; for the body and the spirit 
have been used to create One Being, the Conscious Individ- 
ualized Soul. 



86 The Illuminated Faith 

To the uninitiated, these sayings are perplexing. To those 
who estimate them from the intellectual center, they are 
enigmatic. But to those who have experienced them, they 
are truth and life. 

64. But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus 

knew from the beginning who they were that believed 

not, and who should betray him. 
Those who do not believe, will not obey. And those who 
do not obey the dictates of the Spiritual Law in every de- 
partment of their lives, in the secret crevices of the heart 
as well as in manifest relations with men, will not be able 
to attain Christhood ; consequently, they will not be able to 
understand. We understand the truth only as we become 
the truth, only as we embody the truth in our experience 
and in our characters. 

Those to whom Jesus referred in this verse were traitors 
to God; for they had been taught the truth, but would not 
accept the truth and would not live the truth. 

65. And he said. Therefore said I unto you, that no man 

can come unto me, except it were given unto him of 
my Father. 

66. From that time many of his disciples went back, and 

walked no more with him. 

When they found that he knew what was in their hearts ; 
and when they understood that, by a mere outer, formal 
following, they could not become immortal ; when they had 
become convinced that they would have to do as Jesus did, 
and live the Divine Law as he lived it — ^then, they ''went 
back, and walked no more with him. ' ' 

Men then, as today, wish to gain power ; but they do not 
wish to pay the price of power. They seek something for 
nothing, which is an anomaly in nature. Power is safe in 
no man's hands until he has paid the price of power by de- 
veloping its conditions in his own experience and in his own 
character. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 87 

67. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away ? 

68. Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord to whom shall 

we go ? thou hast the words of eternal life. 

Jesus taught the Divine Law, the Cosmic Law, the Ethi- 
cal Law ; and whoso lived according to the Law would have 
eternal life. 

69. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, 

the Son of the living God. 

70. Jesus answered them. Have not I chosen you twelve, 

and one of you is a devil ? 

One is evil, he has not lived the Law ; nor has he thought 
the thoughts and held the desires that would make him 
Soul Conscious. 

71. He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon : for he it 

was that should betray him, hieing one of the twelve. 

"When we know the Divine Law and obey it not, we also 
are betraying the Christ as truly as did Judas Iscariot. We 
are not true to the knowledge that we possess ; and, to be un- 
true to the truth, is to betray the truth. 



LESSON TWENTY-FOUR 

Men who are bound by the desires of the flesh do not like 
to be taught the truth, because it interferes with 
their pleasures. 

St. John 7 :l-24. 

1. After these things Jesus walked in Galilee : for he would 

not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill 
him. 

2. Now the Jews ' feast of tabernacles was at hand. 

3. His brethren therefore said unto him. Depart hence, and 

go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the 
works that thou doest. 



88 The Illuminated Faith 

4. For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and 

he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do 

these things, shew thyself to the world. 

The disciples thought that, in doing a good work, man 

should do it openly and before all. They did not yet know 

that the greatest good can be done in secret: ''Let not thine 

left hand know what thy right doeth. ' ' 

5. For neither did his brethren believe in him. 

It is seldom that brothers of the flesh believe in a man 
and recognize that he has great capabilities. For this 
reason, is it seldom in these days even, that a brother will 
employ his brother, or have him do anything for him. 

6. Then Jesus said unto them. My time is not yet come : but 

your time is always ready. 

7. The world cannot hate you ; but me it hateth, because I 

testify of it, that the works thereof are evil. 

Those who do evil do not wish to be told of their evil 
ways. They do not wish to be interfered with. They do 
not wish that anyone should awaken them to their evil 
ways; for a guilty conscience is never an agreeable com- 
panion. 

It is for this reason that the true reformer always has a 
difficult path to travel. Men are wedded to their habits, 
whether in business, social, or educational fields ; and they 
would rather have things go wrong than to have anyone 
come and change them, even though a change might be to 
the good of mankind generally. They think only of the 
flesh, only of themselves. Others have no hold upon them. 
They live for the self ; and they will die in the self. 

8. Go ye up unto this feast : I go not up yet unto this feast ; 

for my time is not yet full come. 

9. When he had said these words unto them, he abode still 

in Galilee. 

10. But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also 

up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 89 

11. Then the Jews sought him at the feast, and said, Where 

is he? 

12. And there was much murmuring among the people con- 

cerning him : for some said, He is a good man : others 
said, Nay ; but he deceiveth the people. 
No matter how innocent a man may be, if he is accused 
of crime, half the people will believe him guilty. No mat- 
ter how guilty a man may be of a crime, if he is acquitted, 
half the people will believe him innocent. No matter how 
great a work a man may be doing, half the people will con- 
demn him, even though he may be helping them. Neverthe- 
less, it pays to live a good life and to do a good work. There 
are other rewards than the reward of popularity. 

13. Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the 

Jews. 

14. Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the 

temple, and taught. 

15. And the Jews marvelled, saying. How knoweth this man 

letters, having never learned ? 

16. Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, 

but his that sent me. 

17. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doc- 

trine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of 
myself. 

Jesus did not teach anything new. He only taught that 
which the Masters in the East had taught him ; and it was 
not even new with them. 

They had all been taught long before him, not a doctrine, 
but a system of living. Through living according to the 
principles that had been taught them, they had become Il- 
luminated, or Soul Conscious. And when man has reached 
Soul Consciousness, he has become the Son of God ; and the 
Father teaches him in the temple — not in a temple made 
with hands, but in that temple wherein dwells the living 
God. Truly had Jesus been taught by God, by ' ' Him who 
had sent him. ' ' 



90 The Illuminated Faith 

18. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory : but 

he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is 
true, and no unrighteousness is in him. 
Those who have become illuminated speak and teach the 

truth. They have no fear of man, because they know that 

the Father is with them. And who can be against them? 

But those who are not illuminated seek their own glory; 

they teach only those things which please men and which 

cause them to be glorified by men. 

19. Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you 

keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me? 
Moses, through the Illumination that he had won, re- 
ceived the divine laws from the Father, and taught them to 
his people ; but his people would not obey them. Had they 
obeyed, they would have become illuminated, and therefore 
the Sons of God. It would not then have been necessary for 
Jesus to teach as he did, because the Jews would have been 
like him. They had the laws; but they disregarded them 
and misinterpreted them. 

20. The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who 

goeth about to kill thee? 
When man has found his God, and dares to teach the 
truth, he is accused of all manner of evil : he is insane, he is 
a fool, and all manner of things. Nevertheless, freedom of 
soul, and a clear conscience are their own reward. Let no 
man be discouraged. 

21. Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one 

work, and ye all marvel. 

22. Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision: (not be- 

cause it is of Moses, -but of the fathers;) and ye on 
the sabbath day circumcise a man. 

23. If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that 

the law of Moses should not be broken ; are ye angry 
at me, because I have made a man every whit whole 
on the sabbath day? 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 91 

24. Judge not according to the appearance, but judge right- 
eous judgment. 
''According to thy works, so shall it be unto thee." It is 
not the mere appearance of a thing that counts, but that 
which it really is. If a man does a good work, no matter 
what the time or what the day, it is good. If a man does 
evil, no matter what the day, even if it is not the sabbath, 
it is still evil. 



LESSON TWENTY-FIVE 

The Christ does not appear to man until he has finished 
the work. When the transmutation has taken place, 
then comes the Illumination. 

St. John 7 :25-53. 

25. Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, 

whom they seek to kill? 

26. But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto 

him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very 
Christ? 

27. Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when 

Christ Cometh, no man knoweth whence he is. 
We may know the man; but, unless we ourselves have 
lived the life and received Divine Illumination, we cannot 
tell whether he has received the Christ or not. We will 
know that there is some strange power manifesting through 
him; but, being ignorant of the Christ, how can we recog- 
nize what it is ? Only he who has found the Christ within 
himself can know the Christ. 

28. Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying. 

Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am : and I 
am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, 
whom ye know not. 

29. But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent 

me. 



92 The Illuminated Faith 

30. Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands 

on him, because his hour was not yet come. 

31. And many of the people believed on him, and said, 

When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than 
these which this man hath done ? 

32. The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such 

things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the 
chief priests sent officers to take him. 

33. Then said Jesus unto them. Yet a little while am I with 

you, and then I go unto him that sent me. 
Jesus knew that the end of his work was nearly at hand ; 
and, knowing this, he knew that he would return to the 
Father, not to be a part of Grod, but to be with God. For 
he was become a Conscious Individualized Soul — an entity, 
which, through its Consciousness, would remain an entity. 

34. Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me : and where I am, 

thither ye cannot come. 
Only those who have obeyed the Divine Law and become 
conscious of the Soular Individuality, can reach the plane 
on which dwell those who have reached this Consciousness. 
This is the right hand of the Father. 

35. Then said the Jews among themselves, "Whither will he 

go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the 
dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gen- 
tiles? 
The Jews, not having lived the Law, were blind to every- 
thing except that which was of the flesh. They could not 
understand anything that pertained to the Soul. The only 
place they knew was the earth, whereon dwells the body of 
man. 

36. What manner of saying is this that he said. Ye shall 

seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, 
thither ye cannot come ? 

37. In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood 

and cried, saying. If any man thirst, let him come 
unto me, and drink. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 93 

38. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out 

of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 

39. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that be- 

lieve on him should receive : for the Holy Ghost was 
not yet given ; because that Jesus was not yet glori- 
fied.) 

Glorification comes to man when he receives Divine Il- 
lumination and becomes One with God. When the Light 
breaks in heaven, and he sees the Father of Light therein — 
then, has he become glorified ; for the Holy Ghost, which is 
Soul Consciousness, has descended upon him. 

40. Many of the people therefore, when they heard this say- 

ing, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. 

41. Others said. This is the Christ. But some said. Shall 

Christ come out of Galilee? 

42. Hath not the scripture said. That Christ cometh of the 

seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, 
where David was ? 

43. So there was a division among the people because of 

him. 

44. And some of them would have taken him ; but no man 

laid hands on him. 

45. Then came the ofiicers to the chief priests and Phari- 

sees; and they said unto them. Why have ye not 
brought him ? 

46. The officers answered, Never man spake like this man. 

47. Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also de- 

ceived ? 

48. Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on 

him? 

Those in power, no matter what the age or the time, will 
only believe in that which their class accepts. No matter 
how great a truth may be, if it does not issue from one who 
belongs to the favored ranks, it is considered a falsehood; 
and, if one who does not belong to the favored ranks dares 
to teach the truth to the people or dares to help them, that 



94 The Illuminated Faith 

one is condemned, is persecuted, and may even be driven 
out of Ms own birthplace. 

If a person has the sanction of those in power, he may 
preach error as the truth, and it is acceptable; but, if he 
does not have that authority, then he may not even preach 
the truth, nor may he do the works which are of the Father 
even if they are for the good of man. Nevertheless, blessed 
is he who persists in living the exalted life of the Christ, in 
spite of misunderstanding. 

49. But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed. 

50. Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by 

night, being one of them,) 

51. Doth our law judge any man before it hear him, and 

know what he doeth? 

52. They answered and said unto him. Art thou also of Gali- 

lee? Search and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no 
prophet. 

Not only will those in power condemn one not of their 
ranks who dares to do anything they do not sanction, but 
they even condemn without giving his case a fair hearing. 
It is enough to them that he does not bow down to their 
dictation ; that he will not do as they do ; that he will not 
pay tribute to them. 

Woe unto him who dares to be free ! All men of the flesh 
are but slaves. Their slavery differs only in degree; oft- 
times, it is even more grievous than literal serfdom. 

On the other hand. Messed is he who dares to he free — 
free from the entanglements and the fetters of a deceiving, 
carnal nature. Blessed, indeed is he; for he is free indeed 
whom the truth functioning in his own heart hath made 
free. 

53. And every man went unto his own house." 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 95 



LESSON TWENTY-SIX 

He who has no sin may judge ; but he who has sin should 
not judge, because of the judgment that he will bring 
upon himself. 

St. John 8 :l-20. 

1. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. 

2. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, 

and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, 
and taught them. 

3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a 

woman taken in adultery ; and when they had set her 
in the midst, 

4. They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in 

adultery, in the very act. 

5. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should 

be stoned : but what sayest thou ? 

6. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to 

accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his 
finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them 
not. 

7. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, 

and said unto them, He that is without sin among 
you, let him first cast a stone at her. 

8. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. 
If we are free from evil, we may judge ; but, so long as 

we ourselves do that w^hich is wrong in the eyes of the Di- 
vine Law, we have no right to judge or to condemn another. 
And, if we are free from evil, we will not feel inclined to 
judge. 

"We may not be guilty of the sin indicated here, but what 
is the difference whether we are guilty of a grievous mani- 
fest sin, or whether we hate our brother or our enemy. Both 
types of sin, sin in outer act and sin in thought and feeling, 
are alike forbidden by the Divine Law. 



96 The Illuminated Faith 

She who is guilty of adultery is no more worthy of pun- 
ishment than the woman who, by word or look, casts a 
shadow of doubt upon the reputation of another ; nor is she 
more guilty than the woman who, through gossip, hurts the 
feelings of another. All are evils; and, as such, one evil 
doer is equally guilty with another, and deserves just pun- 
ishment. Through the inevitable reactionary effects of the 
deed or the thought, each reaps a just reward. 

9. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own 

conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the 
eldest, even unto the last : and Jesus was left alone, 
and the woman standing in the midst. 

10. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but 

the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are 
those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? 

11. She said, No man. Lord. And Jesus said unto her, 

Neither do I condemn thee : go, and sin no more. 

It is possible that many of those who were clamoring for 
her punishment had themselves been guilty with her; but, 
in order to keep suspicion away from themselves, they were 
as loud as the others in demanding punishment for her. 

If no man had condemned her or found her wanting, 
why should Jesus condemn her? Sins are of two classes: 
those which cause hurt or harm to another ; and those which 
cause hurt or harm to ourselves. Other sin is there none. 
*'He who hath ears to hear, let him hear." "He who has 
eyes to see, let him see." 

12. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the 

light of the world: he that followeth me shall not 
walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. 
Jesus did not mean that they should follow his footsteps, 
but that they should take him as an example, and that, if 
they lived the life he lived, and obeyed the Divine Law as 
he obeyed it, then would they find the light. He could not 
give them the light, for each man must find that for himself 
through obedience to the Divine Law; but he could point 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 97 

out the way which they must follow. Thus, he would be as 
a light to them, guiding them into the right. 

13. The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest 

record of thyself ; thy record is not true. 

14. Jesus answered and said unto them. Though I bear 

record of myself, yet my record is true; for I know 

whence I came, and whither I go ; but ye cannot tell 

whence I came, and whither I go. 

Whoever obeys the Divine Law, through the Illumination 

which will be his, will come to know whence he is, who he is, 

and whither he will go. 

He who is born of God (and all are born of God who have 
attained Individualized Soul Consciousness) will know the 
Father. Knowing the Father, he will know whence he 
came. And, knowing whence he came, he will know whither 
he will go ; for from that from which man came, to that will 
he return. ''Earth to earth, and Spirit to Spirit, and Soul 
to Soul." 

15. Ye judge after the flesh ; I judge no man. 

Those who have not reached Soul Consciousness are im- 
perfect and full of evil. The evil which is in themselves 
they see in others ; and they judge that which they see, not 
knowing that they judge only themselves. 

16. And yet if I judge, my judgment is true ; for I am not 

alone, but I and the Father that sent me. 
The Illuminated Soul, being in harmony with the Father, 
sees the heart and the Soul, and judges accordingly, if it 
must judge. But it will not be inclined to judge, nor will 
it take pleasure therein ; because it knows that all men are 
judged by a righteous judge, even by him who is within. 

17. It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two 

men is true. 

18. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father 

that sent me beareth witness of me. 

7 



98 The Illuminated Faith 

19. Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus 

answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father; if 
ye had known me, ye should have known my Father 
also. 
He that knows the Father knows the Son also. For he 
who knows the Father has already become the Son. 

No one can know the Father, neither become the Son, 
unless he first learns the Divine Law and then obeys it. Nor 
is this all ; but he must indeed make deliberate effort to find 
the Christ. ''Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and all 
things shall be added unto you." Unless the kingdom of 
heaven is first found, we cannot know the Father. When 
the kingdom is found, then do we know the Father; for the 
Father dwells in the kingdom, and, when we have found the 
Father, then are we the Son of the Father. 

20. These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught 

in the temple : and no man laid hands on him ; for his 
hour was not yet come. 



LESSON TWENTY-SEVEN 

The flesh cannot know God; but he who purifies the flesh 
may become like the Father, and thus may know God. 
St. John 8 :21-37. 

21. Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye 
shall seek me, and shall die in your sins; whither I 
go, ye cannot come. 
Jesus, through a life of obedience to the Divine Law and 
through the deliberate efforts he had made while under the 
training of Masters in the East, had freed the flesh from 
evil. Through intelligent application of the Law, he had 
transmuted fleshly tendencies into the Conscious Individ- 
ualized Soul. Through this transmutation, he had become 
the Son of God. The Jews to whom he spake, were still liv- 
ing the carnal life and knew nothing of God in actual ex- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 99 

perience. Consequently, if they should continue to live the 
carnal life, they would die because they had not created 
anything immortal; while Jesus, having created an Im- 
mortal Soul, would go to the Father. 

22. Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he 

saith. Whither I go, ye cannot come. 

23. And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath : I am from 

above : ye are of this world : I am not of this world. 
They were unenlightened. They lived in the desires of 
the flesh, and were consequently earthly, "from beneath." 
Jesus lived in the Soul ; the Soul lived in heaven, and, con- 
sequently, was ' ' from above. ' ' 

24. I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins : 

for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your 

sins. 
Unless man frees himself from evil, or sin, he shall die. 
The divine spark that is within him will not die because, 
to that, as such, there is no death. It will return to the 
Father whence it came ; but, as the one in whom it had been 
planted, had made no effort to bring it to consciousness — 
to individualize it, to feed it, to cultivate it — it returns to 
the Father just as it left Him, in an unindividualized, non- 
dynamic, potential state. The personality, that which is the 
carnal man, having no Immortal Fire within, will die. Per- 
sonality is not eternal. And, as there is no Individuality, 
no Conscious Soul, there is nothing that can live in the con- 
dition of individualization. Only those who have found 
the kingdom of heaven and have cultivated the soulual na- 
ture into an individualized entity, can continue to live as 
individuals. 

25. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus 

said unto them. Even the same that I said unto you 
from the beginning. 

26. I have many things to say and to judge of you : but he 

that sent me is true ; and I speak to the world those 
things which I have heard of him. 



100 The Illuminated Faith 

27. They understood, not that he spake to them of the 

Father. 

28. Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the 

Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and 
that I do nothing of myself ; but as my Father hath 
taught me, I speak these things. 
When the Son of man is lifted up (which means, when 
the Son of man has been changed, or transmuted), he be- 
comes the Son of God. The man of flesh, when changed 
from the carnal to the Divine, is the Son of God and knows 
the Father. He has come into his divine inheritance. 

29. And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not 

left me alone; for I do always those things that 

please him. 
He who is become the Son of God is never alone ; for, in 
his temple, dwells the living God. The fire upon the altar is 
always attended to by the Vestal Virgin, which is purity of 
thought and act. 

30. As he spake these words, many believed on him, 

31. Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him. If 

ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples in- 
deed; 
' ' If ye continue in my word, ' ' means if ye continue to live 
the life that Jesus taught by his words. He taught the true 
life and he lived the true life. If we accept, and live as he 
lived, we will become the character he was. 

32. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make 

you free. 

And what is the truth? To know that God made man 
after His likeness and in His image, and that God is the 
Soul that dwells within man. ''To know God and Jesus 
Christ whom He hath sent" — this is truth. 

God was not made after the image of man ; but God made 
man after His own image. As all things are in God, it fol- 
lows that, being in God's image, man likewise contains all 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 101 

things, though in lesser degree. But man must develop his 
Godlikeness. He must develop his God-Consciousness. The 
image of God in man is in a potential state, and must be 
evolved and unfolded and brought to vital consciousness. 
This man does by living the life indicated by the Divine 
Law. The truth of God is potential, involved, in man 's na- 
ture. But it must be evolved and made dynamic and al- 
lowed to function in his life. Truth functioning in man's 
nature sets him free from error and sin. Truth and Good- 
ness are already with him ; but he must come to know them 
and to know his Creator. To know the truth means to be- 
come conscious of the Infinite. This consciousness sets man 
free from the entanglements of the self -life, and thus makes 
him free to act and move and have his being in a higher 
realm of realization and experience. He lives on a higher 
plane of consciousness, as the bird set free from the egg- 
shell is on a higher plane of existence. 

God is Love and Light and Life. The more we have of 
love for all things, in our natures, the more of God we have 
in us, and the more we will become like Him. 

33. They answered him, "We be Abraham's seed, and were 

never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou. Ye 
shall be made free ? 

34. Jesus answered them, Yerily, verily, I say unto you, 

Whosoever commiteth sin is the servant of sin. 

A man may be a slave to another man and still be a free 
mortal ; for, though his body may be bound to another, the 
Soul cannot be bound except by himself. 

The man that lives an evil life is a slave — not necessarily 
a slave to man, but a slave to his own evil thoughts and de- 
sires. There is no bondage equal to bondage to one's own 
petty self. He who lives the life of the flesh is the slave of 
the flesh. While he who lives a life of harmony with the 
Divine law, although he may serve another man in bondage, 
is indeed a divinely free man. 



102 The Illuminated Faith 

35. And the servant abideth not in the house forever : but 

the Son abideth ever. 

36. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be 

free indeed. 

37. I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill 

me, because my word hath no place in you. 
This should be interpreted as the experience of the soul 
in general — the soul that is born in flesh and darkness either 
gradually destroys itself through neglect of its divine pos- 
sibilities or accepts the truth and ultimately finds Illumina- 
tion and Immortalization of Soul. One born in bondage to 
the senses and pleasures that belong to the senses is loathe 
to give them up. But, in some way, the truth comes into his 
life ; he is clearly shown that ' ' the wages of sin is death. ' * 
Yet, he wishes to continue in the old way because it is the 
way of pleasure ; but he remembers the truth that has come 
to him, and something within continually reminds him of 
it, although it has not yet become a part of his conscious- 
ness. He may try to crush out that something, that voice, 
which is within ; for it has not yet found a permanent rest- 
ing place in his nature. It seems foreign to his former self ; 
it is ' ' the voice crying in the wilderness. ' ' He may try to 
rid himself of it, because it interferes with his peace of 
mind. Yet, in time, he becomes thoroughly convinced that 
this voice is the voice of his own better nature, his own 
higher self, his own Soul. In time, also, the truth and the 
voice become thoroughly established in his nature, until it 
is natural for him to obey the dictates of the Law of love 
and good-will toward all creatures, until the pleasures of 
the lower self no longer are a temptation to him. The true 
life, the true character, qualities of a Christly Soul, and 
service to humanity are in themselves their own true and 
satisfactory reward. The Son thus makes him free — free 
from the errors of a selfish personality; free on the plane 
of higher thought and realization. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 103 



LESSON TWENTY-EIGHT 

He that is of the Father will do the will of the Father. 
St. John 8 :38-59. 

38. I speak that which I have seen with my Father : and ye 

do that which ye have seen with your father. 
Jesus, being the Conscious Son of Grod, or the Christ, did 
the will of the Father. The Jews were still only the chil- 
dren of their earthly father, the children of the earth with 
its desires and weaknesses, and could only do the things of 
the earth ; for they were still bound by the earth and that 
which was of the earth. Thus is carnal man ever bound. 

39. They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our 

father. Jesus saith unto them. If ye were Abra- 
ham 's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. 

40. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you 

the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not 

Abraham. 
Abraham listened to the truth when he was given it by 
the Father which was within. He obeyed the Divine Law 
and reaped the consequent reward. But the Jews were the 
offspring only of the physical Abraham and knew not the 
God of Abraham. 

41. Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, 

We be not born of fornication ; we have one Father, 
even God. 

42. Jesus said unto them. If God were your Father, ye 

would love me : for I proceeded forth and came from 

God ; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. 

The Jews were of their father, the flesh. They knew 

nothing except the desires and the passions of the flesh. 

They had never lived in harmony with the Divine Law and 

therefore were not of the Father; for only he is of the 



104 The Illuminated Faith 

Father who doeth the will of the Father and knoweth the 
Father. 

43. Why do ye not understand my speech ? even because ye 

cannot hear my word. 

44. Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your 

father ye will do. He was a murderer from the be- 
ginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is 
no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh 
of his own : for he is a liar, and the father of it. 
The devil is evil. He is of the flesh. All evil thoughts, 
all evil desires, and all evil acts, are from the devil; but be 
it remembered that evil is the devil. It is of the flesh, it is 
darkness ; for it dwelleth in darkness. 

Whoever does evil is of the devil and cannot know God. 
When man lives according to the Divine Law, he does not 
listen to the desires of the flesh, but uses the flesh in the 
gratification of the desires of the Soul, or of the Father. 

The flesh has its use; for, without it, the Soul could not 
manifest, the Christ could not be known. But the flesh 
should be the servant of the Soul, and not the master. 

45. And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. 

46. Which of you convinceth me of sin ? And if I say the 

truth, why do ye not believe me ? 

47. He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore 

hear them not, because ye are not of God. 
No man can say that he knows God, or that he is the child 
of God, if he does not do the will of God. To do the will of 
God means not to cheat, nor to steal, nor to lie, nor to hate, 
nor to be jealous; but to be of service to humanity, to give 
forth good counsel, to cheer the fallen, and to give love to 
all those that need it. ''By their fruits shall ye know 
them." 

48. Then answered the Jews, and said unto him. Say we not 

well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil ? 

49. Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my 

Father, and ye do dishonour me. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 105 

50. And I seek not mine own glory : there is one that seek- 

eth and judgeth. 

51. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, 

he shall never see death. 
If a man keep his sayings — that is, if he lives in harmony 
with the Divine Law — he cannot see death ; for he finds the 
Father before the body leaves him, and he passes on to the 
Father, a Conscious Individualized Soul. 

52. Then said the Jews unto him. Now we know that thou 

hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; 
and thou sayest. If a man keep my saying, he shall 
never taste of death. 

53. Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is 

dead ? and the prophets are dead : whom makest thou 
thyself? 

54. Jesus answered. If I honour myself, my honour is noth- 

ing : it is my Father that honoureth me ; of whom ye 
say, that he is your God ; 

55. Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if 

I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like 
unto you : but I know him, and keep his saying. 

56. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he 

saw it, and was glad. 
Jesus does not refer to the body of Abraham; for that 
had long since passed to the elements whence it had come. 
He spoke of the Soul of Abraham, the real Abraham. In 
life, Abraham had lived in harmony with the Divine Law 
and therefore he rejoiced in seeing the day of the Christ; 
for he had become the Christ and had found the Father 
which is in heaven and had prophesied of the coming of the 
great teacher. The Jews knew only of the physical Abra- 
ham and nothing of him that still lived. 

57. Then said the Jews unto him. Thou art not yet fifty 

years old, and hast thou seen Abraham. 

58. Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, 

Before Abraham was, I am. 



106 The Illuminated Faith 

The Christ has been always. When God created the 
world, he also created the souls that were to be, and the 
Spirit of Christ was with Him. 

Ever since the time of eternity in the past, since God 
moved upon the face of the waters, there have been Souls; 
or Children of God; and the Spirit of the Christ hovered 
ever over these, as the mother bird over its young, so that 
it might be ready to envelop the Soul which had reached 
Consciousness. 

59. Then took they up stones to cast at him : but Jesus hid 
himself, and went out of the temple, going through 
the midst of them, and so passed by. 



LESSON TWENTY=NINE 

Man is a world in himself. When the Soul has become Con- 
scious, it is the light of his world. 
St. John 9 :1-17. 

1. And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind 

from his birth. 

2. And the disciples asked him, saying. Master, who did sin, 

this man, or his parents, that he was born blind ? 

3. Jesus answered. Neither hath this man sinned, nor his 

parents: but that the works of God should be made 
manifest in him. 

In the answer given by Jesus to his disciples, we have the 
clearest exposition of the Law of Karma that is given in 
the Scriptures. Jesus said neither the man nor his parents 
had sinned. This being true, and man reaping only accord- 
ing to his sowing, why should this man suffer ? The soul in 
that man lived long before it occupied the body that he now 
inhabited, which was blind. In a former life, the soul was 
clothed by the flesh of one w^ho had grievously sinned, but 
who had not destroyed himself through sin. 

There are grades of evil doing, as there are grades in all 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 107 

things. One man who may have sinned much, eventually 
awakens to the truth and strives to do right. Before he has 
fully succeeded in finding the kingdom of heaven, however, 
the earth form passes away, freeing the soul, yet prevent- 
ing it from further development in that life. 

In the case under consideration, the soul was partly de- 
veloped, the light was dimly seen by it; consequently, in- 
dividualization had begun. The soul cannot return to the 
Father merely as a divine spark ; for the germ of the spark 
had begun to be developed. Furthermore, not being a Con- 
scious Individualized Soul, it cannot return to the Father as 
a conscious entity, or as the Son of God. There is there- 
fore but one thing for it to do : it must remain in the soul 
sphere until such time as it finds a suitable opportunity to 
return to earth. It then takes up its abode in the flesh once 
more, and begins its awakening and its development where 
it had left off before, and suffers for its former evils. 
Though neither he nor his parents had sinned, the body suf- 
fers because that which was before had committed evil. 

The Law must be fulfilled; for the works of the Father 
must be made manifest. 

4. I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is 

day : the night cometh when no man can work. 
While the life of the physical body lasts, we must do our 
work ; for the body is necessary that the soul may manifest 
itself. Through the body only, can Regeneration take place. 
Only while in the body can Illumination be experienced. 
Only while in the body can we do the works of the Father 
— the works of regeneration. If we do not finish the works 
while it is day — that is to say, while the physical life lasts — 
we cannot do it; for we cannot do the work while the dark- 
ness covers us. Therefore we must then wait for another 
day — that is to say, we must take on another body, in order 
to finish the work that we had begun. 

5. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. 
The Christ awakened in man is the light and the life of 

man, and continues to be his light and his life as long as he 



108 The Illuminated Faith 

remains with man — which is, as long as man obeys the Di- 
vine Law. 

6. When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and 

made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of 
the blind man with the clay. 

7. And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of" Siloam, 

(which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his 

way, therefore, and washed, and came seeing. 

When the man that was blind had paid the penalty of sin, 

he could see. The Law is absolutely just, every debt must 

be paid in full ; and, when all debts have been paid, either 

through suffering or through service rendered, man is free. 

8. The neighbours therefore, and they which before had 

seen him that he was blind, said. Is not this he that 
sat and begged ? 

9. Some said. This is he : others said. He is like him : but he 

said, I am he. 

10. Therefore said they unto him. How were thine eyes 

opened ? 

11. He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made 

clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me. Go 

to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and 

washed, and I received sight. 

When we obey the Divine Law, we will reap its benefits. 

Had this blind man not obeyed, he would have continued 

blind. But he obeyed the command of the Master and 

through obedience did he receive his sight. When we obey 

the Divine Law, and make effort to see, gradually, the Light 

is given to us, and eventually we will be able to see the 

Light. 

12. Then said they unto him. Where is he ? He said, I know 

not. 

13. They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was 

blind. 

14. And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, 

and opened his eyes. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 109 

That is to say, it was ' ' the good day ' ' when the blind re- 
ceived sight. Only when we recognize the good and live ac- 
cording to the Laws of Good, which are the Laws of God, 
do we receive Soul sight. Only through obedience to the 
good, that which is Divine, can we receive the true light. 

15. Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had 

received his sight. He said unto them. He put clay 
upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see. 

16. Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of 

God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others 
said. How can a man that is a sinner do such mira- 
cles ? And there was a division among them. 
The Pharisees could only understand the written code. 
They knew nothing of the Divine Laws of Soul Develop- 
ment. They considered it better to let those who suffered 
to suffer than to give them relief on the sabbath day. They 
forgot that the sabbath day is the day wherein to do good, 
and that all days are as sabbath days if we keep them as 
such and do good therein. 

17. They said unto the blind man again, What sayest thou 

of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said. He 
is a prophet. 



LESSON THIRTY 

While man follows the desires of the flesh he is blind. When 

he obeys the Voice of the Soul he begins to see. 
St. John 9 :18-41. 

18. But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he 

had been blind, and received his sight, until they 
called the parents of him that had received his sight. 

19. And they asked them, saying. Is this your son, who ye 

say was born blind ? how then doth he now see ? 

20. His parents answered them and said. We know that this 

is our son, and that he was born blind : 



110 The Illuminated Faith 

21. But by what means lie now seeth, we know not ; or who 

hath opened his eyes, we know not ; he is of age ; ask 
him : he shall speak for himself. 

22. These words spake his parents, because they feared the 

Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any 

man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put 

out of the synagogue. 

From this, we see that Excommunication by the Church 

dates from before the time of Jesus, and was the sword that 

was held above the heads of all those that would dare to 

seek for the truth. 

23. Therefore said his parents, He is of age ; ask him. 

24. Then again called they the man that was blind, and said 

unto him. Give God the praise: we know that this 

man is a sinner. 
The leaders feared that, if the man who was blind should 
say it was the Christ who had healed him, the multitude 
would desert the established church, and would follow 
Jesus. They were willing to do anything to prevent this. 

25. He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I 

know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was 

blind, now I see. 
When we obey the desires of the flesh, and live the carnal 
life, we are blind to higher things ; for we know nothing ex- 
cept that which belongs to the flesh and the world of flesh. 
But when we deny the desires of the carnal seK, and listen 
to the desires that spring from the Soul, we begin to do the 
will of the Father ; and, as we do this, gradually we receive 
Illumination. Then, in proportion to our degree of Illumi- 
nation, do we see both the things of the flesh and the things 
of the Father. Whereas we were blind before, now do we 
see. 

26. Then said they to him again, What did he to thee ? how 

opened he thine eyes ? 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 111 

27. He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did 

not hear : wherefore would ye hear it again ? will ye 
also be his disciples? 

28. Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple ; 

but we are Moses' disciples. 
Here we have the key to the cure of the blindness ; for he 
admits that he is his disciple. To be a disciple of anyone 
means to follow his example, to believe that which he 
teaches, to live the principles as they are taught. Through 
obedience to the Law, did the blind man receive his sight. 

29. We know that God spake unto Moses : as for this fellow, 

we know not from whence he is. 
What though some Masters did receive messages from the 
Father, and was taught by the Father, that will not save us, 
nor give us Immortality. Only when we ourselves so live 
that the Father is with us, can we become Immortal, or have 
eternal life. 

30. The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is 

a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence 
he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes. 

31. Now we know that God heareth not sinners : but if any 

man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him 
he heareth. 

32. Since the world began was it not heard that any man 

opened the eyes of one that was born blind. 

33. If this man were not of God, he could do nothing. 

This may seem a contradiction of other parts of the scrip- 
tures; for it is here clearly stated that God does not hear 
the sinner. In a sense, this is true. 

When the sinner, or doer of evil, awakens to the fact that 
the life of evil is not the true life ; when, on account of this 
awakening, he changes his life and begins to use his 
thoughts, his desires, and his powers for good — then, is he 
no longer to be classed as a sinner. Though he may have 
much of sin upon his soul, he is not now a sinner because he 
has changed his mode of living and is now obeying the Law. 



112 The Illuminated Faith 

Now, the Father hears him, not as a sinner, but as one who 
is obeying the will of the Father and is striving to free him- 
self from sins, or evils, committed in the past. And Jesus 
taught that we should ' ^ let the past bury its dead. " It is 
for us to live the enlightened life, and, through the enlight- 
ened life, to free ourselves from the dead and evil past. 

34. They answered and said unto him. Thou wast altogether 

born in sins, and dost thou teach us ? And they cast 
him out. 

35. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he 

had found him, he said unto him. Dost thou believe 
on the Son of God? 

36. He answered and said, Who is he. Lord, that I might 

believe on him ? 

37. And Jesus said unto him. Thou hast both seen him, 

and it is he that talketh with thee. 

38. And he said. Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. 

39. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this 

world, that they which see not might see; and that 
they which see might be made blind. 

40. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard 

these words, and said unto him. Are we blind also ? 

41. Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have 

no sin: but now ye say. We see; therefore your sin 
remaineth. 
Moses had taught the divine laws to the Jews and there- 
fore they could not plead ignorance. They knew the law, 
they were not blind to it, but they refused to obey. 

He who knows the Law and does not keep it, is doubly 
guilty; for he must suffer both in soul and in body. He 
who is ignorant of the Law, while obliged to the penalty of 
disobedience to the Law, is not held morally responsible. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 113 



LESSON THIRTY-ONE 

He who gives up the life of the carnal man in order to find 

the Christ, will receive life more abundantly. 
St. John 10 :l-20. 

1. Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that enter eth not by 
the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some 
other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 

They who enter "by the door" are those who become 
tired of the pleasures of the flesh, who awaken to the knowl- 
edge that the pleasures of the flesh lead ' ' to the death unto 
damnation," and who begin to change their life, their 
thoughts, their desires, and their acts so as to be in harmony 
with the Divine Law. 

As they gain knowledge of the Law, they will live more 
and more in harmony of the Law. They also make delib- 
erate effort to obtain wisdom, and to find the Son of God. 
They seek, they practice the Law; and they continue thus 
until they have reached Illumination, or Soul Conscious- 
ness. 

When they have reached Soul Consciousness, they have 
become Individualized Souls, which are Conscious of Son- 
ship with the Father. These are they who have entered the 
sheepfold by the door. 

But they who try to enter some other way are those who 
have spent all their life catering to the desires of the flesh ; 
who have given but little thought to the work of the Father ; 
who have passed their time in riotous living; who care not 
whether their fellow men have anything to eat, or to drink, 
or to put on their bodies, so long as they themselves reap 
heavy benefits from the labors of those who serve them. 
These, as the end of their days draw near, remember that 
they have been taught doctrines which would make it ap- 
pear that, at the last moment, by mere belief in the Son of 
8 



114 The Illuminated Faith 

God, and without works, they could have all their sins for- 
given, and that, through the act of prayer of their own or 
of some other, they could enter into the sheepfold and be 
one with the Father. Of these, Jesus said, "the same are 
thieves and robbers. ' ' 

2. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the 

sheep. 

3. To him the porter openeth ; and the sheep hear his voice : 

and he calleth his own sheep by name, and. leadeth 
them out. 

4. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth be- 

fore them, and the sheep follow him ; for they know 
his voice. 

5. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from 

him : for they know not the voice of strangers. 

6. This parable spake Jesus unto them : but they understood 

not what things they were which he spake unto them. 

7. Then said Jesus unto them again. Verily, verily, I say 

unto you, I am the door of the sheep. 
Only through the Christ, can we enter into the King- 
dom. In order to find the Christ, we must not only believe, 
but we must live as we believe. We must do the works of 
the Father in our relations with men in the practical affairs 
of life as well as in the inner work of Soul Development. 
We must obey the Divine Law. We must seek for, and find, 
the kingdom of heaven now, here on earth. When we have 
found the kingdom of heaven, we have found also the 
Christ. No man can find the kingdom of heaven through 
prayer alone, but through prayer accompanied by works. 
*' Faith without works is dead.'' 

8. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: 

but the sheep did not hear them. 

9. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be 

saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 
Only through the Christ, can we enter the kingdom. The 
Christ is not for us, until, through living the Law, we have 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 115 

become illuminated and have become the Son of God, and 
have thus entered into the kingdom of heaven. The com- 
mand is: ''Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and all 
things shall be added unto you." It does not read: ''Seek 
ye first all the pleasures of the sense life, and then pray to 
the Father that ye may enter into the kingdom. ' ' 

10. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to 

destroy: I am come that they might have life, and 
that they might have it more abundantly. 
He who lives the life of the Christ is not a parasite. He 
does not steal, he does not exploit his fellow men, nor mis- 
use the creatures of God, nor does he sell the chastity of the 
daughters of men, nor make the sons of men imbeciles. He 
lives to be of service to mankind. He seeks not for the 
treasures of earth in countless numbers, but obtains only 
that he may the better help others. All his works are with 
the idea of doing the will of the Father. 

11. I am the good shepherd : the good shepherd giveth his 

life for the sheep. 

12. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose 

own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and 
leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth 
them, and scattereth the sheep. 

13. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth 

not for the sheep. 

14. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am 

known of mine. 

15. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father : 

and I lay down my life for the sheep. 

16. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: 

them also I must bring, and they shall hear my 
voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. 

17. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down 

my life, that I might take it again. 
He who has learned to know the Law and is willing to 
give up the carnal self in order to become the Son of God, 



116 The Illuminated Faith 

shall find everlasting life; but he who thinks more of the 
desires and the pleasures of the flesh than of the Soul, shall 
find naught but death. 

18. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. 

I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take 

it again. This commandment have I received of my 

Father. 

When we have so lived as to find the Christ, then can we 

give up the life of the body; since the life of the Christ, 

the Soul, has been fully awakened. And, when we have 

laid down the life of the self, we can easily take up the life 

of the Soul, which is the real man. 

Men may take the life of the body ; but they cannot take 
the life of the Soul. For only God can take that from us 
when we have neglected to make use of it. 

19. There was a division therefore again among the Jews 

for these sayings. 

20. And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; 

why hear ye him? 



LESSON THIRTY=TWO 

^ ' I and the Father are one. ' ' 
St. John 10 :21-42. 

21. Others said, These are not the words of him that hath a 

devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind? 

22. And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, 

and it was winter. 

23. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. 
The feast of the dedication takes place when man has 

found the Christ. When the Christ is found within, the 
temple of Solomon is completed. The temple of Solomon 
is man when he is free from evil. The Altar is within the 
Holy of Holies. The Fire is upon the Altar, the Fire is the 
Divine Illumination. When man experiences Illumination, 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 117 

he dedicates his whole life, all that is of him, to the work 
of the Father. 

24. Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto 

him. How long dost thou make us to doubt ? If thou 
be the Christ, tell us plainly. 

25. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: 

the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear 
witness of me. 

26. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I 

said unto you. 

27. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they 

follow me : 

28. And I give unto them eternal life ; and they shall never 

perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my 
hand. 

29. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; 

and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father 's 
hand. 

* ' By their fruits shall ye know them. ' ' They that do the 
work of the Father are from the Father. No man can do 
the work of the Father until he has become like unto the 
Father. 

To do the Will of the Father, is to do His works; and, to 
do His works, is to become His children. We then hear the 
voice of the Father when he speaks to us ; for we know the 
Father. 

None can take us away from the Father ; for, before we 
knew the Father, we knew the things of the flesh, and now 
we realize that they are not lasting. We therefore now 
recognize both the voice of the thief (which is the flesh) 
and the voice of the Father; and we know that which is 
good. 

30. I and my Father are one. 

He who has obeyed the Divine Law and who, through de- 
liberate efforts to find the Christ, has found him, has be- 
come one with the Father. Only by making the effort to 



118 The Illuminated Faith 

reach Illumination, and only by doing the works of the 
Father, can we become one with the Father. 

31. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 

32. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed 

you from my Father; for which of those works do 
ye stone me? 

33. The Jews answered him, saying. For a good work we 

stone thee not ; but for blasphemy ; and because that 
thou, being a man, makest thyself God. 

34. Jesus answered them. Is it not written in your law, I 

said. Ye are Gods. 

35. If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God 

came, and the scripture cannot be broken ; 
The man of flesh, the carnal being, whose mind is not 
yet awakened and who knows nothing but the self and the 
flesh, is not a god. But he whose mind has become awak- 
ened ; he who has used the awakened mind in the building 
of a Conscious Soul ; he who has received Illumination, and 
has cleansed his body so that it has become Solomon's 
temple, or the temple of the living God — such a man is a 
god. If he were not so, then the scriptures were broken, 
and they cannot be broken. 

36. Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and 

sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I 

said, I am the Son of God ? 
He who keeps the Divine Law and does the work of the 
Father is the Son of God; and, if he is the Son of God, 
then is he, in a very true sense, identified with God. He 
who has attained the Christ Consciousness and has become 
conscious of the Infinite commits no blasphemy in identify- 
ing himself with the Divine. 

37. If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 

38. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works : 

that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in 
me, and I in him. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 119 

''Ye are the temples of the living God," is the fiat and 
no one can say nay. If this is not true, then the scriptures 
must be considered false. 

39. Therefore they sought again to take him : but he escaped 

out of their hands, 

40. And went away again beyond Jordan into the place 

where John at first baptized ; and there he abode. 

41. And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no 

miracle : but all things that John spake of this man 
were true. 

42. And many believed on him there. 



LESSON THIRTY-THREE 

With whom the Christ is, there is no death. 
St. John 11:1-36. 

1. Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, 

the town of Mary and her sister Martha. 

2. (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with oint- 

ment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother 
Lazarus was sick.) 

3. Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold^ 

he whom thou lovest is sick. 

4. When Jesus heard that, he said. This sickness is not untO' 

death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God 
might be glorified thereby. 

5. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. 

6. When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode 

two days still in the same place where he was. 

7. Then after that saith he to his disciples. Let us go into 

Judaea again. 

8. His disciples say unto him, Master, the Jews of late 

sought to stone thee ; and goest thou thither again ? 

9. Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? 

If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, be- 
cause he seeth the light of this world. 



120 The Illuminated Faith 

10. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because 

there is no light in him. 

To have found the Christ is to have received the light. 
He who has the light will know right from wrong and the 
consequences of wrong doing ; as a result, he will not be in- 
clined to stumble or do the wrong. 

But he who has not found the light is in the dark and 
does not fully know the Law ; consequently, he may stumble 
or do wrong. 

11. These things said he : and after that he saith unto 

them, Our friend Lazarus sleep eth ; but I go, that I 
may awake him out of sleep. 

12. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do 

well. 

13. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death : but they thought that 

he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. 

14. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. 

15. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to 

the intent ye may believe ; nevertheless let us go unto 
him. 

16. Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his 

fellow-disciples. Let us also go, that we may die with 
him. 

17. Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in 

the grave four days already. 

18. Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen 

furlongs off : 

19. And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to 

comfort them concerning their brother. 

20. Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was com- 

ing, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the 
house. 

21. Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been 

here, my brother had not died. 

22. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask 

of God, God will give it thee. 

23. Jesus saith unto her. Thy brother shall rise again. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 121 

24. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again 

in the resurrection at the last day. 

25. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life : 

he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet 
shall he live : 

26. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never 

die. Believest thou this? 

The Christ is the resurrection. When the mind of man 
awakens and knows that the flesh inherits death; when he 
directs his awakened mental activities toward learning the 
will of the Father ; when he uses the awakened mind delib- 
erately to develop the Soul, that part of his nature which 
is immortal — then, in good time, does he reach Soul Illumi- 
nation. When Illumination is reached, he has found the 
Christ. The Christ is ' ' the life, ' ' even life eternal. 

When the one who has been dead to the Christ — that is, 
has lived only the carnal life — really accepts the Christ, 
though he was dead before, now shall he live. 

27. She saith unto him. Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art 

the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into 
the world. 

28. And when she had so said, she went her way, and called 

Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, 
and calleth for thee. 

When man has found the Christ, when he has reached Di- 
vine Illumination, then has the Master come; for this ex- 
perience is the resurrection of the Christ, resurrection unto 
life everlasting. 

''I am the resurrection and the Life," says the Lord. 
He that truly comes to the Christ by obeying the Divine 
Law, will have found the resurrection. 

Resurrection means to rise up, or to be raised up. In 
order to know the resurrection, it is necessary to raise up 
the evil within us and to place it on the altar in the temple, 
there to change it, or transmute it, into the Divine Light, 
which is the Christ. This is 'Hhe resurrection and the life." 



122 The Illuminated Faith 

29. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came 

unto him. 

30. Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in 

that place where Martha met him. 

31. The Jews then which were with her in the house, and 

comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up 
hastily and went out, followed her, saying. She goeth 
unto the grave to weep there. 

32. Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw 

him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, 
if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. 
With whom the Christ is, there is no death. He who has 
found the Christ is with the Christ always. And with him 
there can be no death; for he has become the Son of God, 
has become the resurrection, and has eternal life. Only 
where Christ is not, is there death. 

33. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews 

also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the 
spirit, and was troubled, 

34. And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto 

him. Lord, come and see. 

35. Jesus wept. 

36. Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him ! 



LESSON THIRTY=FOUR 

Through love are all things made possible. 
St. John 11 :37-57. 

37. And some of them said, Could not this man, which 

opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even 
this man should not have died. 

38. Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to 

the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. 

39. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister 

of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this 
time he stinketh : for he hath been dead four days. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 123 

40. Jesus saith "anto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou 

wouldst believe, thou shouldst see the glory of God ? 

41. Then they took away the stone from the place where 

the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and 
said. Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. 

42. And I knew that thou hearest me always : but because 

of the people which stand by I said it, that they may 
believe that thou hast sent me. 

43. And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud 

voice, Lazarus, come forth. 

44. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot 

with gravecloths : and his face was bound about with 
a napkin. Jesus saith unto them. Loose him, and let 
him go. 

45. Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had 

seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him. 

46. But some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and 

told them what things Jesus had done. 

47. Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a 

council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth 
many miracles. 

48. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: 

and the Romans shall come and take away both our 
place and nation. 

49. And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest 

that same year, said unto them. Ye know nothing at 
all, 

50. Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man 

should die for the people, and that the whole nation 
perish not. 

51. And this spake he not of himself : but being high priest 

that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for 
that nation ; 

52. And not for that nation only, but that also he should 

gather together in one the children of God that were 
scattered abroad. 
Jesus came to teach man how to live. He came to teach 



124 The Illuminated Faith 

man all the divine laws so that whoever would live in har- 
mony with them and would follow him, not in mere belief, 
but in works, should become like him. 

He taught man how to use the forces of the awakened 
mind in developing and in constructing the Soul; how, 
through his thoughts, his desires, and his deeds, to arouse 
to activity the divine spark within, which comes from above, 
from the Father ; he taught how the spark of divinity latent 
in man's being might be aroused and become a Conscious, 
Individualized Soul. He taught that this is the resurrec- 
tion, that this is life eternal; that this is becoming the Son 
of God, the living Christ; that this is "the pearl of greatest 
price ; ' ' that this is ' ' the one thing needful. ' ' This experi- 
ence is referred to in various ways : Christhood ; Mastership ; 
Initiation; Adeptship; attaining Divine Illumination, or 
Soul Consciousness, or the Christ Consciousness, or Immor- 
tality of Soul, or Conscious Immortality. These are merely 
different names emphasizing different aspects of the One 
Great Truth that Jesus taught. 

Jesus taught men how to leave the world of flesh, how to 
face boldly the change called death; for it is not death to 
die, but entrance into everlasting life. Thus he came not 
to save one nation, but to save all nations by being an ex- 
ample to them, proving to them that there is no death for 
him that has accepted the Christ and has done the will of 
the Father. 

53. Then from that day forth they took counsel together 

to put him to death. 

54. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews ; 

but went thence unto a country near to the wilder- 
ness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued 
with his disciples. 

55. And the Jews' passover was nigh at hand: and many 

went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the 
passover, to purify themselves. 

56. Then sought they for Jesus, and spake among them- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 125 

selves, as they stood in the temple, What think ye, 
that he will not come to the feast? 
57. Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given 
a commandment, that, if any man knew where he 
were, he should shew it, that they might take him. 

In the symbolism of the East, the story of Lazarus and 
Martha and Mary is but the experience of one Soul. 

Bethany means "going through suffering," or ''the place 
of affliction." 

No man has ever sought for the Christ until after he had 
been sore afflicted. It is when affliction comes upon us and 
all things of the flesh and of the world fail us that we turn 
within and seek for that which is not of the flesh. 

Failure to find assistance from the flesh or from the world 
or through the efforts of any human being brings about bit- 
terness; and this is represented by Martha, for she dwells 
in the place of bitterness. 

Through affliction, and through failure to receive help 
from that which has always brought us pleasure and profit, 
and through the consequent bitterness, comes the search for 
that which is higher. When we search, we find, and thus 
we receive light and become exalted; this is Mary, for she 
is ''the exalted one," having become exalted through ac- 
cepting the Christ. And now, when we have reached the 
exalted state, when we have received the Light, we receive 
the assistance of God ; this is Lazarus come forth, for Laza- 
rus is ' ' the assistance of the Father. ' ' 

Thus, we have the mortal who is dead in the flesh, man 
ruled by his passions and carnal desires; afflictions come 
upon him and all that which he held dear fails him ; he be- 
comes bitter against those things upon which he had before 
depended and which he thought could not fail him ; he seeks 
and finds light and becomes exalted; and, as he seeks still 
further, he receives the light of the Father, and becomes 
the Christ. The resurrection has taken place, he lives, Laza- 
rus has come forth. It is the parable of a life, of a soul. 
The narrative is brief and simple; but the process that it 



126 The Illuminated Faith 

represents, is prolonged and complicated. It is the story 
of the soul's becoming disentangled from the meshes of 
matter. 



LESSON THIRTY^FIVB 

The carnal man thinks only of profit to the self; but the 
enlightened man thinks of his Soul and of service to 
humanity. 

St. John 12 :l-23. 

1. Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Beth- 

any, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom 
he raised from the dead. 

2. There they made him a supper ; and Martha served : but 

Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with 
him. 

3. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very 

costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped 
his feet with her hair : and the house was filled with 
the odour of the ointment. 

4. Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's 

son, which should betray him, 

5. Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, 

and given to the poor ? 

6. This he said, not that he cared for the poor ; but because 

he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was 

put therein. 
Judas was of the flesh. He thought only of the profit 
that could be made, of the money that might be had and 
used for the self. He was still the unawakened mind, the 
mind that could not understand anything but that which 
concerned the physical or carnal self. 

7. Then said Jesus, Let her alone: against the day of my 

burying hath she kept this. 

8. For the poor always ye have with you; but me ye have 

not always. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 127 

Mary, she that was to be exalted, gave all that she had 
to the Christ. She was willing to give the dearest things 
she had if the Christ would accept them. She had awakened 
to the truth, and was willing to sacrifice the very best she 
had in order that she might become acceptable to the Christ. 

When the mind is once truly and fully awakened, it will 
lay everything at the feet of the Christ. All that it yet has 
of value — every thought, every desire, and every deed — 
will be used for the purpose of pleasing the Father which 
dwells in the temple ; and it will be accepted by the Father. 

Man should do everything in his power to help those less 
fortunate than himself; but, before he can really do any 
great good, he must make every effort himself to find the 
Christ. It is therefore his duty to use his all in order that 
he may know the Christ ; and, after becoming conscious of 
the Christ, he can then the better serve the unfortunate. 

The Christ can be served but once in a lifetime, the poor 
are always. This does not mean that we should neglect any 
opportunity to be of help to others. It means that our first 
duty is to our own soul, to bring it to consciousness before 
it is too late, in order that we may thereby he the hetter 
qualified to serve humanity. 

9. Much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was 

there: and they came not for Jesus' sake only, but 
that they might see Lazarus also, whom he raised 
from the dead. 

10. But the chief priests consulted that they might put 

Lazarus also to death ; 
In Oriental symbolism, Lazarus is "that which is assist- 
ance to God," or "one who does the will of God." The 
chief priests and Pharisees were evil, they lived the carnal 
life. They had the Law, but misinterpreted it and would 
not obey; consequently, they desire to remove or destroy 
everything that might in any way conflict with the power 
they were wielding over the people. Not only this, but 
men like these will make every effort to destroy the con- 
science within themselves : and, no matter whether it is the 



128 The Illuminated Faith 

Voice of God in themselves or those that do God 's will, they 
desire to destroy. 

11. Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went 

away, and believed on Jesus. 

12. On the next day much people that were come to the 

feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to 
Jerusalem, 

13. Took branches of palm trees and went forth to meet 

him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of 
Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. 

14. And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon ; 

as it is written, 

15. Fear not, daughter of Sion : behold, thy King cometh, 

sitting on an ass's colt. 

The Christ, which is the King of man, takes possession of 
the temple in humility. He who is proud in the pride of 
the self cannot find the Christ so long as he continues in 
his pride. He who becomes humble, knowing that the flesh 
has neither life nor immortality; he who, in meekness and 
humility of spirit, obeys the Law — such a character will 
build the temple. And the Christ will come, and be king 
in that temple, and reign with justice. 

16. These things understood not his disciples at the first: 

but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they 
that these things were written of him, and that they 
had done these things unto him. 

17. The people therefore that was with him when he called 

Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the 
dead, bare record. 

18. For this cause the people also met him, for that they 

heard that he had done this miracle. 

19. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves. Per- 

ceive ye how ye prevail nothing ? behold, the world is 
gone after him. 

20. And there were certain Greeks among them that came 

up to worship at the feast : 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 129 

21. The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Beth- 

saida of Galilee, and desired him, saying. Sir, we 
would see Jesus. 

22. Philip Cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew 

and Philip tell Jesus. 

23. And Jesus answered them, saying. The hour is come, 

that the Son of man should be glorified. 

Only in Oriental symbolism, can we find the key to the 
interpretation of the above. 

Bethsaida means ''the place where good works are done/' 
* * the place of the fruit of works. ' ' 

Philip means ''one who loves;" Andrew, "one who has 
strength ; ' ' the Son of man, ' ' the awakened mind. ' ' 

When the mind of man awakens to the knowledge that the 
body is not all of life, and seeks for the higher, or the en- 
lightened, life, he comes to understand that only through 
work can he reach Soul enlightenment ; for ' ' by their fruits 
shall ye know them. ' ' Consequently, he begins to do good 
works, he brings forth good fruits. He has entered Beth- 
saida. 

Good works man does, not in order to reap glory or per- 
sonal profit to the self, but because, having awakened to- 
the truth, he loves to do the works which are of the Father.. 
Such a man is Philip, the lover of good works. 

As he continues in the work of the Father through love- 
for His work, he gains strength. This is Andrew. 

As the Awakened Mind (which is the Son of man) does; 
the works of the Father, and brings forth good fruit ; as it 
does this in love and becomes strong, it reaches Illumina- 
tion. Illumination is the glorification of the Son of man 
and he has become the Son of God. The temple is com- 
pleted, the Soul worships at the shrine within ; for God now 
sits on the throne. The incense of purity burns on the altar 
attended to by the Vestal Virgins, which are pure thoughts 
and holy desires ; for these keep the fire ever burning. 



130 The Illuminated Faith 



LESSON THIRTY-SIX 

If we use the powers of the body for the good of the Soul, 

we find eternal life. 
St. John 12:24-50. 

24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat 

fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone : but if 
it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. 

25. He that loveth his life shall lose it ; and he that hateth 

his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. 

The grain of wheat that is kept in the garner will not 
bring forth fruit ; but, if it is buried in the earth so that it 
may decay, the germ which is within, the soul of the wheat, 
will spring forth and produce. 

Thus it is with man. If he looks only after the good of 
his body, doing only that which the carnal flesh desires, he 
is keeping the grain of wheat in the garner. 

Man must awaken to the fact that the body is given him 
only that it may be used for the purpose of bringing forth 
the germ of immortality which is within. He must think 
such thoughts, hold such desires, and perform such acts as 
will change the body into the Illumined Soul. Then will 
lie find life eternal. 

It is the duty of man to look carefully after the welfare 
of the body, for the body is the temple of the living God. 
But he must not forget the greater interests, nor must he 
yield to the desires of the body when they conflict with the 
loftier aims and ideals of the soul. Hather must he bury, 
or "plant," the body — which is to say, he must not listen 
to the desires of the carnal self, but must change them into 
the greater desires which have to do with the works of the 
Father. This is then like burying the grain of wheat ; for 
it is subjecting the carnal desires, burying them, so that 
the desires of the Son of man may be gratified. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 131 

26. If any man serve me, let him follow me ; and where I 

am, there shall also my servant be : if any man serve 
me, him will my Father honour. 
To serve the Son of man, means to do the will of the 
Father ; for, if we serve, W€ follow. Likewise, if we follow, 
we serve. To do the will of the Father is to serve Him ; and, 
by serving Him, we become like Him. He will honor us 
in that He suffers us to become His Son. Whereas we were 
first carnal man, then the Son of man, lastly and greatest, 
we become the Son of God. 

27. Now is my soul troubled ; and what shall I say ? Father, 

save me from this hour : but for this cause came I un- 
to this hour. 
Often, when the hour for the change from the Son of man 
to the Son of God comes; when final renunciation of that 
which is of the flesh is at hand — at this crisis, the Spirit is 
willing, but the flesh is weak, and does not wish to give up. 
Then comes the hour of agony. 

28. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice 

from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and 

will glorify it again. 
But if we are faithful, we will not yield to the tempta- 
tion of that which is carnal. Then will come the Illumina- 
tion and the voice which is from heaven ; for the Father has 
taken the seat of authority and honor upon the throne in 
the temple that has been purified. 

29. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said 

that it thundered: others said. An angel spake to 
him. 

30. Jesus answered and said. This voice came not because 

of me, but for your sakes. 

31. Now is the judgment of this world : now shall the prince 

of this world be cast out. 

32. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all 

men unto me. 



132 The Illuminated Faith 

When we have overcome the carnal desires, we are freed, 
or lifted up, from the earth. Having freed ourselves from 
carnal tendencies which are of the earth and ruled by the 
prince of the world, we can show the way to others and thus 
be the means of lifting them up. 

33. This he said, signifying what death he should die. 

34. The people answered him, We have heard out of the 

law that Christ abideth for ever: and how sayest 
thou. The Son of man must be lifted up ? who is this 
Son of man ? 

35. Then Jesus said unto them. Yet a little while is the light 

with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest dark- 
ness come upon you : for he that walketh in darkness 
knoweth not whither he goeth. 
The Son of man, which is the awakened mind, must be 
used for arousing the divine spark within. For the former 
unprofitable thoughts and desires, the awakened mind and 
conscience must substitute thoughts and desires which cause 
right acts, and which tend to construct the Illuminated, In- 
dividualized Soul. Through this process is the Son of man 
become the Son of God. 

Man cannot do this while he is in darkness, nor can he 
do it without knowledge of the Law. But, when the mind is 
awakened to the truth ; when the Son of man teaches — then, 
has he the light and the guidance by which to work. 

35. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be 
the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and 
departed, and did hide himself from them. 

37. But though he had done so many miracles before them, 

yet they believed not on him : 

38. That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, 

which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report ? 
and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been re- 
vealed ? 

39. Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias 

said again, 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 133 

40. He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; 

that they should not see with their eyes, nor under- 
stand with their heart, and be converted, and I 
should heal them. 

41. These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and 

spake of him. 

42. Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed 

on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not 
confess him, lest they should be put out of the syna- 
gogue: 

43. For they loved the praise of men more than the praise 

of God. 

The greatest enemy to the truth is fear. Men come to un- 
derstand the Law; but they fear their friends, their neigh- 
bors, their kin, their brothers in the church. They fear ex- 
communication, that dark club which is wielded by those in 
power. And, through this fear of the world and its 
opinions, they but destroy their own souls. He ''who 
knoweth the Lord, will do the will of the Lord. ' ' 

He who denies the Lord — which is to say, he that does 
not live and act according to his understanding of the Law 
— is not burying the flesh as a seed in the ground that it 
may spring up in Illuminated Soul Consciousness and Eter- 
nal Life. But he is rather burying the soul, unto death and 
destruction. 

44. Jesus cried and said. He that believeth on me, believeth 

not on me, but on him that sent me. 

45. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. 

46. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever be- 

lieveth on me should not abide in darkness. 

47. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge 

him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to 
save the world. 

If we are taught the Law and do not according to the 
Law, we are not judged by him who teaches us the Law; 
but we are judged by that great Judge which keeps the 



134 The Illuminated Faith 

Book of Life whereon are written all things — all that we 
hear, think, desire, and do. We are judged by the Con- 
science, which is always with us. 

48. He that rejecteth me, and reeeiveth not my words, hath 

one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, 
the same shall judge him in the last day. 

49. For I have not spoken of myself ; but the Father which 

sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should 
say, and what I should speak. 

50. And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: 

whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said 
unto me, so I speak. 

The Law is from no man, but is from the Father who is 
the creator of all things. Under the Law were all things 
created. And under that Law must all things live. If they 
do not live in harmony with the Law, they find their place 
among perishable things; for no man can live contrary to 
the Law and attain individual immortality. 

The Law is from the Father; and he who lives in har- 
mony with the Law will become like the Father. He who 
lives contrary to the Law cannot be like the Father; he is 
like the earth, earthly, and lives only to die. 



LESSON THIRTY-SEVEN 

That which comes from God must return to God. That 

which is of the earth, must return to the earth. 
St. John 13 :1-21. 

1. Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew 

that his hour was come that he should depart out of 
this world unto the Father, having loved his own 
which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. 

2. And supper being ended, the devil having now put into 

the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray 
him; 



Mysticai Interpretation of St. John 135 

3. Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into 

his hands, and that he was come from God, and went 
to God; 

4. He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments ; and 

took a towel, and girded himself. 

Judas was of the flesh ; he had never become awakened to 
the divine truths as taught by Jesus. He could think only 
of the self. His thoughts were carnal and destructive in- 
stead of divine and constructive. The evil within him 
caused him not to do the will of the Father and to obey the 
Law, but to follow and to gratify the desires of the flesh. 
He who knows the will of the Father, he who knows the 
Law and does not observe the Law, is betraying the Christ 
continually. He is selling the Christ to the flesh, to those 
who destroy him. 

5. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began 

to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with 
the towel wherewith he was girded. 

6. Then cometh he to Simon Peter; and Peter saith unto 

him. Lord, dost thou wash my feet ? 

7. Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou know- 

est not now ; but thou shalt know hereafter. 

8. Peter saith unto him. Thou shalt never wash my feet. 

Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no 
part with me. 

Unless we are washed — that is to say, unless we are 
cleansed by the power that comes from the Christ (which 
is the Father) — we cannot know the Christ. For it is only 
through the cleansing that comes when the mind awakens to 
the truth and does the truth, that he can ever know the 
Christ or receive Divine Illumination. Thus, it is said that 
we must be washed by the Son of man, the awakened mind, 
before we can know the Christ, or become the Christ. 

9. Simon Peter saith unto him. Lord, not my feet only, but 

also my hands and my head. 



136 The Illuminated Faith 

10. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save 

to wash his feet, but is clean every whit and ye are 
clean, but not all. 

We cannot save a part of ourselves only. Either we must 
free ourselves from all that is evil, or we are not free from 
evil. If we break but one of the commandments, we sin as 
surely as if we broke them all. 

11. For he knew who should betray him ; therefore said he, 

Ye are not all clean. 

12. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his 

garments, and was set down again, he said unto 
them, Know ye what I have done to you ? 

13. Ye call me Master and Lord : And ye say well ; for so I 

am. 

14. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your 

feet ; ye also -ought to wash one another 's feet. 

15. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as 

I have done to you. 

16. Verily, verily, I say unto you. The servant is not greater 

than his lord ; neither he that is sent greater than he 
that sent him. 

17. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. 
Only through service can we become the Master. In order 

to become the Master, we must serve ; for, through serving, 
do we know and understand what is required of the Master. 

When man has reached the highest state of Illumination ; 
when he has become the Christ, who is the Son of God — 
then, there is but one thing that he can do ; that is, to serve 
those who are not so blessed as is he. 

Service thus becomes the keystone to the Arch. It is the 
stone that holds the structure together ; and there is nothing 
greater or more desirable than to be of service to humanity. 

A talent, or a power, is of no value unless it is, or can be, 
used. Of what value is it to be a Master, if one cannot do 
the works of a Master? In the work of a Master, there is 
nothing greater than the ability to serve. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 137 

Though being the Creator of all things, God serves all 
things, and is never idle. If therefore, he who created all 
things, continually serves all things, how much more should 
we, who are His creation, be willing to serve his creation? 

18. I speak not of you all : I know whom I have chosen : but 

that the scripture may be fulfilled. He that eateth 
bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me. 

19. Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to 

pass, ye may believe that I am he. 

20. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whom- 

soever I send receiveth me ; and he that receiveth me 
receiveth him that sent me. 

21. When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, 

and testified, and said. Verily, verily, I say unto you, 
that one of you shall betray me. 



LESSON THIRTY-EIGHT 

When evil leaves man, then is the Son of man glorified ; for 

he has become the Son of God. 
St. John 13 :22-38. 

22. Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of 

whom he spake. 

23. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his dis- 

ciples, whom Jesus loved. 

24. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should 

ask who it should be of whom he spake. 

25. He then lying on Jesus' breast saith unto him. Lord, 

who is it ? 

26. Jesus answered. He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, 

when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped 
the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of 
Simon. 

27. And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said 

Jesus unto him. That thou doest, do quickly. 



138 The Illuminated Faith 

28. Now no man at the table knew for what intent he spake 

thus unto him. 

29. For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, 

that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that 
we have need of against the feast ; or, that he should 
give something to the poor. 

30. He then having received the sop went immediately out ; 

and it was night. 

It was night — that is to say, it was dark, evil was in the 
world and in man, and there was no light. When the soul 
in man is not awake ; when it is still unconscious of its di- 
vine heritage, then, is there great darkness in man, it is the 
night. 

31. Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is 

the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 

When darkness, which is evil, leaves man, the glorification 
comes. For when that occurs, the night leaves him; the 
darkness passes away, for evil is the darkness. When the 
evil in his nature is transmuted, then comes the Illumina- 
tion ; and the Illumination is the glorification from God. 

Man has then found the Christ, he is become the Son of 
God. For the temple has been purified, it has been pre- 
pared, God has taken up his abode in the temple. The di- 
vine spark has become a living Soul, in that it has become 
Conscious, it has become Individualized. The personality, 
which is human and carnal and subject to death, has been 
transmuted, changed, into the Individuality. Man has be- 
come a living Soul, a god. ' ' Is it not written in your law, I 
said, Ye are gods ? ' ' 

32. If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in 

himself, and shall straightway glorify him. 

33. Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye 

shall seek me : and as I said unto the Jews, Whither 
I go, ye cannot come ; so now I say to you. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 139 

34. A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one 

another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one 
another. 

35. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if 

ye have love one to another. 

God is love. Only through love can the Father be found. 
He who has most of love in his character has most of God. 
The more of love man has, the nearer he comes to God. 

Man is the temple of the living God; but God does not 
take up his abode therein until man has prepared the 
temple for him. 

This temple cannot be prepared through hate, through 
jealousy, through impatience, and through shrewd dealings 
with men. Only through obedience to the Divine Law, can 
the temple be prepared; and this obedience must not be 
prompted by a desire to gain the reward of obedience, but 
because we love to do the will of him who gave the Divine 
Law. 

' ' By their fruits shall ye know them. ' ' Only by the love 
that men bear for each other, can they be known. Love 
will manifest through the flesh, and all men who know may 
read. 

36. Simon Peter said unto him. Lord, whither goest thou? 

Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not 
follow me now ; but thou shalt follow me afterwards. 

37. Peter said unto him. Lord, why cannot I follow thee 

now ? I will lay down my life for thy sake. 

38. Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my 

sake ? Verily, verily, I say unto thee. The cock shall 
not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice. 

If Peter had really been willing to give his life for the 
Christ, he could have followed him at once. Though he 
thought he was willing to give his life — the life and the de- 
sires of the body — for the Christ, the events thereafter 
proved that, while ''the Spirit was truly willing, the flesh 
was weak. ' ' 



140 The Illumestated Faith 

Very often we overestimate our strength. We think that 
we are willing to lay down our life for a friend or a loved 
one; but, only when the test comes, do we really know 
whether we have the strength to do so. 



LESSON THIRTY-NINE 

The Divine Law, which is of the Father, is ' * the Way, the 

Truth, and the Life." 
St. John 14:1-14. 

1. Let not your heart be troubled : ye believe in God, believe 

also in me. 
When we obey the Divine Law, which is the will of the 
Father, we need not be troubled ; for all things will be well. 

2. In my Father 's house are many mansions : if it were not 

so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place 

for you. 
Each Soul that has become Illuminated is a mansion. 
There are as many mansions as there are grades of Illumi- 
nation. Not all souls have reached the same degree of Il- 
lumination; and therefore the Father cannot manifest 
equally in all temples. But, if the temple is prepared; if 
the Soul is Illuminated, even though there may still be a 
weakness, as was the case with Peter, it is nevertheless a 
mansion wherein God dwells. 

3. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come 

again, and receive you unto myself ; that where I am, 
there ye may be also. 

4. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. 

If we live the life that brings Illumination, then do we 
know where Christ goes, and we can go there also. All men 
who have found the Christ have become the Sons of God; 
and God dwells with each and every one. *'Ye are the 
temples of the living God," is the divine dictum for those 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 141 

who have transmuted the evil in their natures into good- 
ness ; and no man can gainsay it. 

5. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou 

goest ; and how can we know the way ? 

6. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the 

life : no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

* * I am the way, ' ' said Jesus. And there is no other way. 
Man finds the way in proportion as he gives up the desires 
of the limited, personal self. He must follow the Christ; 
and, in order to follow the Christ, it is necessary for him to 
do the works of the Christ. 

This means that he must encourage and cultivate positive 
and constructive trends of thought. He must establish in 
his consciousness thoughts and desires and feelings that are 
in harmony with the Christ Ideal. He must direct his 
creative thought- and desire-forces into channels that tend 
to change the petty, domineering, exacting, selfish self into 
the Christ Self ; into channels that tend to renew and to re- 
build the cells of the body, causing it to become a fit repre- 
sentative of the Christ Temple. He must consecrate every 
attribute and faculty of his being to the sacred mission of 
fanning the divine spark within into an all-consuming 
Christ Flame of Love and Good-will toward all creatures. 
He must learn the sacred art of feeding the Christ Flame. 
He must learn how not only to make use of the invisible 
forces, but to use them consciously, intelligently, delib- 
erately, conscientiously, in harmony with the Law of im- 
partial, impersonal, Universal Love. All this he must do 
with the settled purpose in mind of nurturing the Divine 
Fire on the Altar, in order that he may he the better quali- 
fied to he of service and inspiration to others in the practical 
relations of life. 

In doing this, eventually, he finds the Christ, who is ' ' the 
way, the truth, and the life. ' ' 

In the Christ are all things: wisdom, peace, love, graces 
of heart, guidance, light, inspiration and Illumination, Im- 
mortality and Life Eternal. 



142 The Illuminated Faith 

No amount of belief in Jesus as a personal, historic char- 
acter can of itself bring man to conscious Oneness with the 
Father. Only through the living, eternal Christ, can man 
come to the Father. Only through doing the works of the 
Christ, both in one's own inner hidden world of thought 
and feeling and in the outer world of relations with men, 
can one know the Father which is in heaven. In the life 
and in the works of the Christ only, is there salvation. 

7. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father 

also; and from henceforth ye know him, and have 

seen him. 
When we have found the Christ, when the Christ dwells 
in the temple, then do we also know the Father; for the 
Father dwells in the same temple wherein dwells the Christ, 
and the Christ is the Son of the living God. 

8. Philip saith unto him. Lord, shew us the Father, and it 

sufficeth us. 

9. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, 

and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that 
hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest 
thou then. Shew us the Father ? 

10. Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the 

Father in me ? the words that I speak unto you I 

speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth 

in me, he doeth the works. 

To have found the Christ, necessitates that the Father 

dwells within; for it is evidence that we have become the 

temple of the living God. When God dwells in us, then do 

we dwell in the Father ; for the twain are one. 

Only the Illuminated, Individualized, Soul can know the 
Father. Only such a Soul is part of the Father, or one with 
Him. He is in such a Soul; and such a Soul is in the 
Father. The purified. Illumined Soul is truly conscious of 
its Oneness with the Father ; it is conscious of the Infinite. 

11. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in 

me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 143 

12. Verily, verily, I say "iinto you, He that believeth on me, 
the works that I do shall he do also; and greater 
works than these shall he do; because I go unto my 
Father. 

It is a common thing to hear it said that the time is passed 
when this teaching applies to man. This claim betrays ig- 
norance of the Divine Law, and ignorance of the power that 
obedience to the Law gives man. Little recognition is given 
in the present age to divine authority — the authority that 
comes through living in harmony with the laws of the uni- 
verse. General recognition is given to those who receive au* 
thority from men by setting seal to prescribed articles of 
faith or established creeds. 

^ * He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do 
also.'' To do his works is the natural and the inevitable 
result of true belief on him. Belief such as Jesus referred 
to, leads man to follow the principles of growth and train- 
ing that Jesus had himself observed. Such growth and such 
training open up to man's consciousness the infinite re- 
sources of a Christly life. Such growth and such training 
make man master of his interior forces, and enable him to 
direct the invisible essences of the universe according to his 
will. Thus, through a correct understanding of the divine 
laws that Jesus made use of, and through a Godly charac- 
ter, man is enabled to do the things that Jesus did or even 
greater things. 

But let no one think to attain such Mastership for the 
sake of power and fame. A motive such as this, mixed and 
impure, would lead but to self -injury and self-destruction. 
Power is safe in the hands only of him who has cleansed 
his heart of selfish purposes. The road to true Mastership 
is long, and narrow, and rugged, and steep. Self-efface- 
ment and self-abnegation and self-renunciation must pre- 
cede and accompany the establishment of the Christ Self 
in one's character and consciousness. The depths of hu- 
mility through which one must pass who attains the Christ 
Consciousness surpass even the imagination of the worldly- 



144 The Illuminated Faith 

minded. To attain Mastership demands a total surrender 
of worldly conceits and worldly cravings. To establish the 
reign of Christliness in one's character demands a complete 
transmutation of carnal elements and carnal tendencies in 
thought and feeling as well as in act. Undue attachment 
to perishable things must be severed. As the massive rock 
in time registers indentations and markings through the 
constant flow of drops of water ; so, the embedded debris and 
sediment of a selfish personal self must be melted by being 
subjected to the warmth of the Christ Flame, and must be 
transmuted into the qualities of intrinsic goodness. 

To fear the doctrine that it is the privilege of all men to 
attain Mastership and to do the works of the Christ and to 
realize the Christ Consciousness of Oneness with the Father, 
is sure evidence that he who fears this doctrine has little 
conception of the depths of humility and suffering through 
which man must pass in order to establish the Christ Con- 
sciousness in his nature. He who fears this doctrine does 
not realize that power and true Mastership comes only to 
those who have laid at the foot of the cross all desire for 
personal power and temporal greatness; only to those who 
have freed themselves from the clutches of sin, error, and 
selfishness attendant upon the lower personality; only to 
those who have paid the full penalty for every violation of 
the Divine Law. Those who fear this doctrine give evi- 
dence by this very fear that they have no conception of the 
Gate man must enter, of the Path man must travel, before 
he is qualified to hear the still small voice of the Father 
within, ''Thou art my beloved Son in whom I am well 
pleased. ' ' 

13. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I 

do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 

14. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it. 

To ask in his name means to ask only of the Christ and 
the Father that are within us. Being within the temple, 
and asked by Him who is within the temple and dwells 
therein, it shall be granted. "I and the Father are one,'* 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 145 

and *'Ye are the temples of the living God," cover the Law 
and all things; and he who denies does not know God. 
Whoever denies the Father and the Son, does not know 
either the Father or the Son. He who has learned to ''ask 
in His name" does not ask for this, that, and the other. 
He is not tossed about by conflicting wishes and whims and 
motives. His wishes, his longings, his desires are all held 
in abeyance in the presence of the Infinite. When he asks, 
he creates, with full sanction of every attribute of his being. 



LESSON FORTY 

If we love the truth, we will do the will of Him who is the 

giver of all truth. 
St. John 14:15-31. 

15. If ye love me, keep my commandments. 

If we truly love the light, we will obey the Divine Law 
that includes this commandment. If we love light more 
than darkness, we love the Christ. The Christ is the Light 
that is in the Soul. He is the Light that envelops the Soul. 
He is the Illumination, that which is born in glory when the 
Soul becomes Conscious, ''the resurrection and the life.'' 

16. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you an- 

other Comforter, that he may abide with you for 
ever; 

17. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot re- 

ceive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him : 
but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and 
shall be in you. 
The world cannot know the spirit of truth, because the 
world seeks only that which is of the senses. It seeks profits, 
that it may know the pleasures of the flesh. It subjects men 
to useless labor, to pain and to suffering and to misery, in 
order that it may satisfy its desires for the carnal and the 
sensual. 
10 



146 The Illuminated Faith 

The world does not seek truth because truth would pre- 
vent taking advantage of the less fortunate. It fears truth, 
for truth would point out the curse of worldly things. The 
world does not seek truth, nor can it know truth. Only the 
mind that has awakened to the illusions of the senses will 
seek for truth ; and it will find truth and be comforted by 
the spirit of truth. 

18. I will not leave you comfortless : I will come to you. 

19. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more ; but 

ye see me : because I live, ye shall live also. 

If we have sought for the truth and have found it ; if we 
have lived the Divine Law and have become one with the 
Christ — then shall we live as long as the Christ lives, be- 
cause we have become one with him. 

The world cannot know of this life, because the Christ 
has nothing to do with the world. When the world seeks 
the Christ in sincerity and in truth, then will it find the 
Christ. 

20. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and 

ye in me, and I in you. 

When we have found the Christ ; when we have prepared 
the temple so that the Father can dwell therein — then are 
we conscious of our Sonship, and then will we know that 
the Christ is in the Father, and we in the Christ. 

21. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them he 

it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be 
loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will 
manifest myself to him. 

To know the Divine Law and to live and do according to 
the Divine Law, is to love the Christ and to love the truth 
more than the pleasures of the carnal self. Otherwise, we 
would still follow after the pleasures of the flesh. To love 
the Law is to love the Father ; and, as we love the Father, 
so does He love us, and will manifest through us. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 147 

22. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that 

thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the 

world ? 
Judas is ''that which praises the Lord." Iscariot is "he 
that destroys." Judas means the Illuminated Soul, that 
which has learned to know the Father, and praises the 
Father. 

23. Jesus answered and said unto him. If a man love me, he 

will keep my words: and my Father will love him, 
and we will come unto him, and make our abode with 
him. 
If we love the Christ, we will not only believe in that 
which He is, but we will keep His words — that is, we will 
think and act according to His words. To do this, is to be- 
come like Christ; and the Father will love us, because we 
have become like him. To do this is to become the temple of 
God ; and both the Father and the Christ will take up their 
abode in the temple. 

24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings : and the 

word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's 
which sent me. 

25. These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present 

with you. 

26. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the 

Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all 

things, and bring all things to your remembrance, 

whatsoever I have said unto you. 

When we have lived according to the Divine Law ; when 

we have cleansed the temple through right thinking, right 

desiring, and right acting — then, the Christ comes (for it is 

the Christ to become a Conscious Individualized Soul) . But 

this is not all, Illumination comes; and this is the Holy 

Ghost, this is the Comforter. While it is true that finding 

the Christ and receiving Illumination seem to be one and 

the same thing, yet there is a difference: the Illumination, 

the resurrection, is the receiving of the Holy Ghost. 



148 The Illuminated Faith 

27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you : not 

as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your 

heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

When man has found the kingdom of heaven — that is, 

when the Soul has become fully conscious and is become the 

Christ — then has man found peace; and, though at times 

there may be a fear in the heart, this fear will leave him. 

28. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and 

come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would re- 
joice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my 
Father is greater than I. 

29. And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, 

when it is come to pass, ye might believe. 

30. Hereafter I will not talk much with you : for the prince 

of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. 

31. But that the world may know that I love the Father; 

and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I 
do. Arise, let us go hence. 



LESSON FORTY=ONE 

He who has found the Father has become part of the Father 

and receives life from Him. 
St. John 15 :1-16. 

1. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. 
The Father is the root from which all things come. Christ 

is the vine, because he is nearest to the Father. 

2. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh 

away : and every branch that beareth fruit, he purg- 

eth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 

All men that come unto the Christ — which is to say, all 

men that do the work, or bring forth the fruit, of the 

Christ — are the branches of the vine. He that does not the 

work of the Father, will be cut away ; for he is a parasite 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 149 

on the vine. The good husbandman cuts away the para- 
sites, and they die; and the good vine brings forth more 
fruit. 

3. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken 

xmto you. 

4. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear 

fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more 
can ye, except ye abide in me. 

Man of himself can do nothing. He is nothing. He is 
but a house of clay. The clay is his because he has received 
it from his parents; but the life that is in him belongs to 
the Creator, and may be taken from him at any moment. 
But, if man abides in the Christ — that is, if he does the 
works of the Christ — then does he become like the Christ, 
and his works are then the fruits of the vine. 

5. I am the vine, ye are the branches : He that abideth in 

me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much 
fruit : for without me ye can do nothing. 

6. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, 

and is withered ; and men gather them, and cast them 
into the fire, and they are burned. 

Those who do not abide in Christ are they who live only 
for the carnal, sensual self. They are proud, and think that 
they have power because they accomplish things on the ma- 
terial plane; but they are like vines that bring not forth 
fruit. "When the Spirit of life, which belongs to the Father, 
is taken away from them, it is found that they have builded 
nothing ; that the divine spark which was within them is in 
the same inert state as when they received it from the 
Father, it is the talent which they buried, and it will be 
taken from them. 

Having nothing, they will be cut off from the vine. That 
which was theirs, the personality, returns to the earth with 
.the body. And all is destroyed ; for it is burned, it is 
changed into its former elements. 



150 The Illuminated Faith 

7. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall 

ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. 

8. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit ; 

• so shall ye be my disciples. 
When we live according to the Divine Law and do the 
works that are in harmony, we bring forth much good fruit. 
As we bring forth good fruit, so do we build the Soul that 
shall live. When Illumination comes to us, then do we 
glorify God ; for to become like him is to glorify him. 

9. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you : con- 

tinue ye in my love. 

10. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my 

love; even as I have kept my Father's command- 
ments, and abide in his love. 
This is to say that, if we keep the Divine Law and do the 
works that the Divine Law gives us to do, then do we abide 
in the love of the Father and become the Son of the Father, 
which is also the Christ. 

11. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might 

remain in you, and that your joy might be full. 

12. This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as 

I have loved you. 

Greater things can no man do than to love others. Not 
only shall he love his friends, or those that do good to him, 
but also those that he thinks are his enemies and that do ill 
to him ; for, if he knows the Divine Law, he will understand 
that none can be his enemy except the one that dwelleth 
within him. 

If he knows the Christ and does the will of the Christ, he 
can have no enemies; but, if he does the will of the flesh, 
the carnal and sensual self, there is an enemy within. 

13. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay 

down his life for his friends. 
If we are willing to give the life, which is the desires of 
the flesh, for the life of the Soul, then have we done the 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 151 

greatest thing that man can do ; for, as we take the life of 
the flesh, we transmute the desires of the flesh into qualities 
of Soul, which becomes the Christ, the life everlasting. 

14. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 
We are friends of the Christ, the Illuminated Soul, only 

when we do that which is for the good of the Soul. If we 
do that which the flesh desires contrary to the best interests 
of the Soul, then we are not the friend of the Christ. 

15. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant 

knoweth not what his lord doeth : but I have called 
you friends; for all things that I have heard of my 
Father I have made known unto you. 
Man is a servant only so long as he must serve another, 
so long as he cannot be the master himself. When he has 
overcome, he is no longer a servant; but he is a fellow- 
worker with all those who have become the Sons of the 
Father. 

16. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and or- 

dained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit,, 
and that your fruit should remain : that whatsoever 
ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give 
it you. 
To ask '4n his name" means to ask for that which the 
Divine Law grants to all those that obey its dictates. 

If we so live as to become the Sons of the Father, then 
may we ask that which belongs to the Sons of the Father ; 
it is by right ours, and wiU be granted to us. 



LESSON FORTY-TWO 

' ' Love one another. ' ' 
St. John 15 :17-27. 

17. These things I command you, that ye love one another. 

This is one of the greatest commandments given to man 
by his Maker ; for upon this rest all the others. 



152 The Illuminated Faith 

If man loves his fellow men, he will deal fairly with 
them. He will not take advantage of them ; but he will re- 
munerate justly for all that he may receive from others. 
He will help his fellow man when in need of help. He will 
sympathize with him when in sorrow. He will give him 
the hand of friendship when he is down; and in all things 
will he deal fairly and justly, and thus remove the sorrow 
and the misery that now cover the face of the earth. 

Wars will cease ; for, if we love one another, we will cease 
to murder one another. Crimes will cease ; for the poor will 
not need to steal and to commit crime in order to have the 
wherewith to live. Daughters of men will not be prosti- 
tuted, because love does not admit of prostitution. When 
men love one another, the kingdom will have come on earth 
as it is in heaven. 

18. If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before 

it hated you. 
If the world hates those who live according to the Divine 
Law, it hates the Father; but those who do the will of the 
Father need not care, for the Father will take care of his 
own. 

19. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own : 

but because ye are not of the world, but I have 

chosen you out of the world, therefore the world 

hateth you. 

When we do the will of the world, we do the things that 

are of the flesh; and naturally the world will love us, for 

w^e are of the world. But when we are doing the will of the 

Father, which is the Divine law, then do we contrary to 

the will of the world; and that which antagonizes always 

brings hate and resentment. 

20. Eemember the word that I said unto you. The servant 

is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted 
me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept 
my saying, they will keep yours also. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 153 

If the world condemns the Father in that it does not the 
will of the Father; if the world curses the Father because 
it lives in misery, not having obeyed the Divine Law — then, 
how shall he who obeys the Divine Law expect to be free 
from persecution? If the world curses the Father, it will 
surely curse those who do the will of the Father. 

But the persecution of the world is of the flesh, and can- 
not hurt the Soul that is within man. If we do the right, if 
we obey the Divine Law, then we need not fear. ''Fear not 
him who can destroy the body, but him who can destroy 
both body and soul." 

The world may persecute us, it may destroy the body; 
but only we ourselves, through disobedience to the Divine 
Law, can destroy our soul. 

21. But all these things will they do unto you for my 

name 's sake, because they know not him that sent me. 

22. If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not 

had sin : but now they have no cloak for their sin. 

23. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 

24. If I had not done among them the works which none 

other man did, they had not had sin : but now have 
they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 

If the Divine Law had not been given to men, they would 
not know the right from the wrong, and would not be held 
responsible for their acts. But the Law has been taught 
them. Each Messiah in turn has made the Law clearer, un- 
til now men know the Law and are responsible for all that 
they do. 

25. But this Cometh to pass, that the word might be ful- 

filled that is written in their law, they hated me 
without a cause. 

Men have no reason to hate that which is good and just. 
Because they see that the truth deprives them of fleshly 
pleasures, do they hate those who teach the truth. 

Men love to think that their little weaknesses are hidden, 



154 The Illuminated Faith 

that no one knows of them. When they find that others do 
know of them, and teach against them, they are full of hate. 

26. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send un- 

to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, 
which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of 
me: 

27. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been 

with me from the beginning. 



LESSON FORTY=THREE 

When the Spirit of truth, which is the Illumination, comes 

to man, he will know all truth. 
St. John 16 :1-21. 

1. These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not 

be offended. 

2. They shall put you out of the synagogues : yea, the time 

Cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he 

doeth God service. 
Those who dare to speak the truth contrary to accepted 
creeds will be excommunicated from the churches, which 
know not the Father. Moreover, it is considered an honor 
to destroy those who teach the truth contrary to the estab- 
lished order of things. However, let this fact deter no one 
from seeking ''the truth, the way, and the life." For the 
consciousness of truth is its own reward. Persecution, mis- 
understanding of friends, disapproval of relatives — such 
things as these, what are they in comparison with greatness 
of Soul which towers superior to all hindrances, and con- 
siders them nothing but trivial incidents of the moment ? 

3. And these things will they do unto you, because they 

have not known the Father, nor me. 

4. But these things have I told you, that when the time 

shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 155 

And these things I said not unto you at the begin- 
ning, because I was with you. 

5. But now I go my way to him that sent me ; and none of 

you asketh me, Whither goest thou ? 

6. But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow 

hath filled your heart. 

7. Nevertheless I tell you the truth ; it is expedient for you 

that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter 

will not come unto you ; but if I depart, I will send 

him unto you. 

If the Son of man does not give place to the Son of God, 

then Divine illumination cannot take place. Unless Divine 

Illumination does take place, the Holy Ghost, which is the 

Divine Fire, or the Comforter, cannot come to the Soul. 

In giving birth to newness of life, there is always sorrow 
and pain. When the mind awakens to the truth, and gives 
up and effaces and renounces its self-thoughts and its self- 
desires, there is a new birth, and there is sorrow and pain. 
So must there be sorrow and pain when the Son of man 
makes place for the Son of God, so that the Comforter may 
come. 

8. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, 

and of righteousness, and of judgment : 

9. Of sin because they believe not on me ; 

10. Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see 

me no more ; 

11. Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. 

12. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot 

bear them now. 

13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will 

guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of 

himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he 

speak : and he will shew you all things. 

Truth can come to man only by degrees. As he lives the 

true life and as the mind creates new conditions, building 

the Soul which is to be immortal, new truths will gradually 

and continually come to it until all things are made plain. 



156 The Illuminated Faith 

14. He shall glorify me : for he shall receive of mine, and 

shall shew it unto you. 

15. All things that the Father hath are mine : therefore said 

I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto 
you. 

16. A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a 

little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the 

Father. 
When the mind has awakened to the truth, it has become 
the Son of man. In other words, the Awakened Mind is the 
Son of man. It does the will of the Father, and, through 
obedience to the Divine Law, causes the Christ to come 
forth. But, before the Christ can come forth, the Son of 
man must have become the Son of God, which in reality is 
the Christ. The Son of man, or the Awakened Mind, must 
be crucified — which is to say, it must be changed, or trans- 
muted, into the Son of God. After it is crucified, it must 
be buried; and man is then in darkness for a time. But 
the Son of God comes forth from this change, and is now 
the Christ, he that is drawn up and transmuted. He which 
was the Son of man is now the Son of God, and is again 
with man. In still other words, that which was the Awak- 
ened Mind has become the Illumined Soul. 

17. Then said some of his disciples among themselves. What 

is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye 
shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye 
shall see me : and. Because I go to the Father ? 

18. They said therefore. What is this that he saith, A little 

while ? we cannot tell what he saith. 

19. Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him, and 

said unto them. Do ye enquire among yourselves of 
that I said, A little while, and ye shall not see me : 
and again, a little while, and ye shall see me ? 

20. Verily, verily, I say unto you. That ye shall weep and 

lament, but the world shall rejoice : and ye shall be 
sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. 

21. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 157 

her hour is come : but as soon as she is delivered of 

the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for 

joy that a man is born into the world. 

The reference made by Jesus to the woman in travail 

proves conclusively that he had reference to the birth of the 

Son of God. 

While the birth is taking place, there is sorrow and there 
is pain, there seems to be darkness — the hour of the coming 
forth of a new being is at hand. But when the child is born, 
there is joy ; and then does the darkness pass away. 



LESSON FORTY-FOUR 

He that has found the Father in the temple is never alone: 

for the Father is ever with him. 
St. John 16 :22-33. 

22. And ye now therefore have sorrow : but I will see you 

again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy 

no man taketh from you. 
When we have become Illuminated and have received the 
baptism by Fire, we have received that which, though man 
may take our life, he cannot take from us ; because it be- 
longs not to man, but to the Father. 

23. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, 

I say unto you. Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father 

in my name, he will give it you. 
When we ask for nothing, we trust in the Father; and 
the Father will give us all things that w^e need. ''Seek ye 
first the kingdom of heaven, and all things shall be added. ' ' 
When we have sought and found this kingdom, and have 
become one with the Father, He knows the things we need 
before we can ask for them ; and He will give them to us. 

24. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and 

ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. 



168 The Illuminated Faith 

Before this — that is to say, before he has found the 
Christ — man may have believed in a Christ ; but he asked, 
not in the name of the Christ, but in the name of his own 
fleshly desires. He did not know the Christ; therefore he 
could not ask in his name. What he desired he asked for, 
because the self wanted them. 

25. These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs : but 

the time cometh when I shall no more speak unto you 
in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the 
Father. 
Jesus here admits that there is a hidden meaning in all 
that he taught, besides the apparent meaning. This is in 
accordance with oriental custom. Enlightened teachers of 
the East taught all things in symbolism. There was one 
meaning for the masses who could not comprehend the 
deeper significance, and onei for the few who could under- 
stand the higher interpretation. Each meaning was good 
and right for those to whom it was adapted. But, on ac- 
count of this twofold meaning, it is difficult to interpret the 
teachings of Jesus and make them perfectly clear to all. 

26. At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I a(ay not 

unto you that I will pray the Father for you : 

27. For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have 

loved me, and have believed that I came out from 
God. 

28. I came forth from the Father, and I am come into the 

world : again, I leave the world, and go to the Father. 

The Christ came from the Father in the form of the di- 
vine spark such as is in all men. The Christ returned to 
the Father when he had attained Consciousness of the 
Father. The Christ came from the Father in an inert, po- 
tential, dormant, non-conscious, non-individualized, non- 
dynamic state. The Christ returned to the Father as a dy- 
namic, active, conscious. Individualized Soul. 

Man is given free-will, free choice of action. He can live 
for the cravings of the fleshly nature alone ; or, he is at lib- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 159 

erty to change the cravings of the flesh into desires, 
thoughts, and longings that are in harmony with the Divine 
Ideal. To do the latter is to do the will of God. Through 
this process of change, he arouses and awakens the latent 
divine spark within his being. It becomes the Illumined, 
Individualized Soul, because he has transmuted the fleshly, 
carnal nature, the personality, into qualities of a Godly 
Individuality. When this is accomplished, the divine spark 
has become the Christ. The Christ returns to the Father ; 
for both the Christ and the Father dwell in the temple. 
Through the same process that awakened the Soul and 
brought forth the Christ, the temple has been purified and 
made a fit dwelling place for the Father and the Christ. 

29. His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou 

plainly, and speakest no proverb. 

30. Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and need- 

est not that any man should ask thee : by this we be- 
lieve that thou camest forth from God. 

31. Jesus answered them. Do ye now believe ? 

32. Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall 

be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave 
me alone : and yet I am not alone, because the Father 
is with me. 

33. These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye 

might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribu- 
lation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the 
world. 
In the world there is no peace. All is strife and a mad 
rush after that which gives pleasure to the senses. In the 
Soul of man, when it has become Illuminated — there, and 
there only, is peace. 



160 The Illuminated Faith 



LESSON FORTY-FIVE 

When man overcomes the desires of the flesh, he is given 

eternal life, which is, Immortality. 
St. John 17 :l-26. 

1. These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to 

heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify 
thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee : 

2. As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he 

should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given 

him. 
The hour had come for the change. Jesus had completely 
overcome the flesh. The transmutation process had been 
perfected; and he had become the Christ. The time was 
now come when the Son of man should become the Son of 
God. In order that this might be accomplished, a death 
struggle was necessary. It was necessary for the Son of 
man to pass through the agony of death, so that the Son of 
God should come forth, and be glorified. This means bap- 
tism by the Holy Ghost ; thus, is God glorified. 

3. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the 

only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast 
sent. 

4. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the 

work which thou gavest me to do. 

5. And now, Father, glorify thou me with thine own self 

with the glory which I had with thee before the 

world was. 
Jesus, the man of flesh, had obeyed the Divine Law in all 
things. He feared no man, but did the will of the Father. 
The divine spark within him, which had been with the 
Father from all time and which was given him at birth, he 
had awakened and developed and brought into Individ- 
ualized Consciousness; and he now only awaited the final 
Illumination. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 161 

6. 1 have manifested thy name unto the men which thou 
gavest me out of the world; thine they were, and 
thou gavest them me ; and they have kept thy word. 

7. Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou 

hast given me are of thee. 

8. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest 

me; and they have received them, and have known 
surely that I came out from thee, and they have be- 
lieved that thou didst send me. 

9. I pray for them : I pray not for the world, but for them 

which thou hast given me ; for they are thine. 

10. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine ; and I am 

glorified in them. 

11. And now I am no more in the world, but these are in 

the world, and I came to thee. Holy Father, keep 
through thine own name those whom thou hast given 
me, that they may be one, as we are. 

12. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy 

name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and 
none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that 
the scripture might be fulfilled. 

13. And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in 

the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in 
themselves. 

14. I have given them thy word ; and the world hath hated 

them, because they are not of the world, even as I am 
not of the world. 

15. I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the 

world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the 
evil. 

16. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the 

world. 

17. Sanctify them through thy truth : thy word is truth. 

18. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also 

sent them into the world. 

19. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also 

might be sanctified through the truth. 
11 



162 The iLLUMiNiVTED Faith 

20. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which 

shall believe on me through their word ; 

21. That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, 

and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that 
the world may believe that thou hast sent me. 

22. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them ; 

that they may be one, even as we are one : 

23. I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made per- 

fect in one ; and that the world may know that thou 
hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved 
me. 

24. Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, 

be with me where I am; that they may behold my 
glory, which thou hast given me : for thou lovedst me 
before the foundation of the world. 

It was not the intention of Jesus to ask the Father that 
his disciples and those that should do the will of the Father 
might behold his own (Jesus 's) glory, but that those who 
should do the will of the Father and obey the Divine Law 
might in like manner be glorified and behold the glory of 
their own Illumination, even as he should behold his own. 

25. righteous Father, the world hath not known thee : but 

I have known thee, and these have known that thou 
hast sent me. 

26. And I have declared unto them thy name, and will de- 

clare it : that the love wherewith thou hast loved me 
may be in them, and I in them. 

This whole chapter is a Song of Resume — that is to say, 
it is a resume of all that took place in the ministry of Jesus 
on earth. 

More than this, it is a song of Love in sorrow. A prayer 
to the Father to take care of those whom he loved. It is 
such a song as might issue forth from the heart of a mother 
who loves her children, but who is forced to leave them to a 
cold and unsympathetic world. 

It is a plea from the heart — a heart laden and weighted 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 163 

down with the sorrow that comes when one must leave 
many life-long companions whom one loves dearly. 

It is a song nevertheless that has much of glory in it, 
leaving the impression that all things had been done well 
and that the Father would take care of his own. 

Nowhere else is shown the beauty of the Soul of Jesus as 
in this mighty song from the Heart to the Father. 



LESSON FORTY-SIX 

Men of the flesh honor shrewdness and sharp dealings more 
than righteousness; Barabbas more than the Christ. 
St. John 18 :l-40. 

1. When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with 

his disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a 
garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples. 
Cedron means ''the place where dwells sadness." Jesus 
was sad in heart. 

2. And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place : for 

Jesus of ttimes resorted thither with his disciples. 

3. Judas then, having received a band of men and officers 

from the chief priests and Pharisees, cometh thither 
with lanterns and torches and weapons. 

4. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come up- 

on him, went forth, and said unto them. Whom seek 

ye? 

5. They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith un- 

to them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed 
him, stood with them. 

6. As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they 

went backward, and fell to the ground. 

7. Then asked he them again. Whom seek ye? And they 

said, Jesus of Nazareth. 

8. Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he : if there- 

fore ye seek me, let these go their way : 



164 The Illuminated Faith 

9. That the saying might be fulfilled, which he spake, Of 

them which thou gavest me have I lost none. 

10. Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote 

the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. 
The servant's name was Malchus. 

11. Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the 

sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, 
shall I not drink it ? 

12. Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews 

took Jesus, and bound him, 

13. And led him away to Annas first ; for he was father in 

law to Caiaphas, which was the high priest that same 
year. 

14. Now Caiaphas was he, which gave counsel to the Jews, 

that it was expedient that one man should die for 
the people. 

15. And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another 

disciple: that disciple was known unto the high 
priest, and went in with Jesus into the palace of the 
high priest. 

16. But Peter stood at the door without. Then went out 

that other disciple, which was known unto the high 
priest, and spake unto her that kept the door, and 
brought in Peter. 

17. Then saith the damsel that kept the door unto Peter, 

Art not thou also one of this man's disciples? He 
saith, I am not. 

18. And the servants and officers stood there, who had made 

a fire of coals; for it was cold: and they warmed 
themselves : and Peter stood with them, and warmed 
himself. 

19. The high priest then asked Jesus of his disciples, and of 

his doctrine. 

20. Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the world ; I ever 

taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither 
the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said 
nothing. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 165 

21. "Why askest thou me ? ask them which heard me, what I 

have said unto them : behold, they know what I said. 

22. And when he had thus spoken, one of the officers which 

stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, 
saying, Answerest thou the high priest so ? 

23. Jesus answered him, If I have spoken evil, bear witness 

of the evil : but if well, why smitest thou me ? 

24. Now Annas had sent him bound unto Caiaphas the high 

priest. 

25. And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They 

said therefore unto him, Art not thou also one of his 
disciples ? He denied it, and said, I am not. 

26. One of the servants of the high priest, being his kins- 

man whose ear Peter cut off, saith, Did not I see thee 
in the garden with him ? 

27. Peter then denied again: and immediately the cock 

crew. 

28. Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of 

judgment: and it was early; and they themselves 
went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be 
defiled ; but that they might eat the passover. 

29. Pilate then went out unto them, and said. What accusa- 

tion bring ye against this man ? 

30. They answered and said unto him. If he were not a 

malefactor, we would not have delivered him up un- 
to thee. 

31. Then said Pilate unto them. Take ye him, and judge 

him according to your law. The Jews therefore said 
unto him. It is not lawful for us to put any man to 
death : 

32. That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which he 

spake, signifying what death he should die. 

33. Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and 

called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King 
of the Jews? 

34. Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, 

or did others tell it thee of me ? 



166 The Illuminated Faith 

35. Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and 

the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what 
hast thou done ? 

36. Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if 

my kingdom were of this world, then would my ser- 
vants fight, that I should not be delivered to the 
Jews : but now is my kingdom not from hence. 

37. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? 

Jesus answered. Thou sayest that I am a king. To 
this end was I born, and for this cause came I into 
the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. 
Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. 
Truly was Jesus a king, not a king of the world, but of 

that greater realm wherein goodness rules instead of the 

passions of men. 

He came not to set up a temporal kingdom, but to set up 

a Spiritual kingdom, wherein the Souls of men should rule, 

and not the passions of the carnal self. 

38. Pilate saith unto him. What is truth? And when he 

had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and 
saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all. 
The query of Pilate has come down the ages. And what 
is truth ? He who desires to know the truth will not find it 
in the schools of men. But, if he will obey the Divine Law, 
if he will use the mind to build the Conscious Soul, then 
will he become Illuminated ; and through this Illumination 
is the temple of God prepared. God will come to dwell in 
the temple; and the Soul of man, which is the Christ, wiU 
be one with God. And the Father will then teach him the 
truth, for He "is the truth and the life," He is "the life 
and the resurrection." 

39. But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you 

one at the passover : will ye therefore that I release 
unto you the King of the Jews? 

40. Then cried they all again, saying. Not this man, but Ba- 

rabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 167 

Barabbas means ' ' the son of shame. ' ' This is the shame 
of the Pharisees and high priests, that they should destroy 
him who had come to harm no man, but to show men ' ' the 
Way, the Truth, and the Life." 



LESSON FORTY-SEVEN 

All men that have found the Christ are as brethren; for 

their Father is One. 
St. John 19 :l-27. 

1. Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him. 

2. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on 

his head, and they put on him a purple robe, 

3. And said. Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him 

with their hands. 

4. Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, 

Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know 
that I find no fault with him. 

5. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, 

and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, 
Behold the man ! 

6. When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, 

they cried out, saying. Crucify him, crucify him. 
Pilate saith unto them. Take ye him, and crucify 
him : for I find no fault in him. 

7. The Jews answered him. We have a law, and by our law 

he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of 
God. 

8. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the 

more afraid; 

9. And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto 

Jesus, Whence art thou? But Jesus gave him no 
answer. 

10. Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me ? 

knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, 
and have power to release thee ? 



168 The Illuminated Faith 

11. Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all 

against me, except it were given thee from above: 
therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the 
greater sin. 
He that, having found the Christ, would again turn back, 
or deliver the Christ to the flesh, which is the ruler of men, 
commits the greatest of sins. For he has known the truth, 
but crucifies the truth; and he that so crucifies the truth 
hath the blood of Christ on his hands, and has worked un- 
to destruction. 

12. And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: 

but the Jews cried out, saying. If thou let this man 
go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh 
himself a king speaketh against Caesar. 

13. "When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought 

Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a 
place that is called the Pavement, but in the He- 
brew, Gabbatha. 

14. And it was the preparation of the passover, and about 

the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold 
your King ! 

15. But they cried out. Away with him, away with him, 

crucify him. Pilate saith unto them. Shall I crucify 
your King? The chief priests answered. We have 
no king but Caesar. 

16. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be cruci- 

fied. And they took Jesus, and led him away. 

17. And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called 

the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew 
Golgotha : 

18. Where they crucified him, and two others with him, on 

either side one, and Jesus in the midst. 

19. And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And 

the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE 
KING OF THE JEWS. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 169 

20. This title then read many of the Jews. For the place 

where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city : and 
it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. 

21. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write 

not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am 
King of the Jews. 

22. Pilate answered. What I have written I have written. 

The greatest truth that man ever wrote were the few 
words that Pilate placed on the Cross ; for Jesus was in very 
truth the King of the Jews. A greater King than he they 
never had; and, had they obeyed the Laws he gave them, 
they would have become the Children of God. Theirs was 
the opportunity to obey the Law and to become the Sons 
of God ; but they denied the Christ. 

Pilate recognized the Christ, but could in no way help 
himself and obey the Law. The divine fiat had been cast 
forth that thus should it be ; and even so, had he refused the 
demands of the Jews, he would have been called a traitor 
to Caesar because Jesus had been accused of trying to set 
up a kingdom in opposition to Caesar. 

23. Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took 

his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier 
a part ; and also his coat : now the coat was without 
seam, woven from the top throughout. 

24. They said therefore among themselves. Let us not rend 

it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the 
scripture might be fulfilled, which saith. They parted 
my raiment among them, and for my vesture they 
did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did. 

25. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and 

his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and 
Mary Magdalene. 

26. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple 

standing by, whom he loved, he said unto his mother, 
Woman, behold thy son ! 



1 70 The Illuminated Faith 

27. Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother ! And 
from that hour that disciple took her unto his own 
home. 

Love is God, and God is Love. Love makes all men equal. 

Through the love that the mother of Jesus bore him, and 
through the love that Jesus bore to both his mother and 
the disciple, they became as one; and the disciple took the 
mother of Jesus to his heart as his own. 

Moreover, not only had Jesus obeyed the Divine Law, but 
his mother had obeyed it before him, and the disciple with 
him. 

The Father which Jesus had found within the temple, 
through the Illumination, was therefore also the Father 
that had been found both by the mother of Jesus and by 
the disciple ; and they were as one. 



LESSON FORTY-EIGHT 

When we live according to the Divine Law, not only is the 
Soul become Illuminated and Conscious, but the 
body is so purified that there is no evil in it: not a 
bone is broken ; but it is whole — which is to say, holy. 
The flesh, or rather, the desires of the flesh, are dead. 

28. After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now ac- 

complished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, 

saith, I thirst. 
Jesus had fulfilled his mission. He had obeyed the Law, 
and had taught others 'Hhe way" — the methods — of obedi- 
ence, and the results of obedience. 

29. Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they 

filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, 
and put it to his mouth. 

30. When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, 
It is finished : and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 171 

At tlie parting there is always bitterness. Thongh we 
know that the friends we leave will be well taken care of, 
and though we know it is for our best, there is always a 
pang at the parting. 

The end was near. The parting of the ways had come, 
and he felt the pang of the parting. This was the smart, it 
was like vinegar. 

Jesus gave up the ghost. The Spirit, which is the prin- 
ciple of life, left the body. ''The ghost" referred to here 
is the life principle. The Holy Ghost, which was to come 
to the Divine Soul, was the Fire of the Soul, or the Life of 
the Soul, just as the ghost was the life of the body. 

31. The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, 

that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on 
the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high 
day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be 
broken, and that they might be taken away. 

32. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, 

and of the other which was crucified with him. 

33. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead 

already, they brake not his legs : 

34. But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, 

and forthwith came there out blood and water. 

35. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true : 

and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might be- 
lieve. 

36. For these things were done, that the scripture should 

be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. 

37. And again another scripture saith, They shall look on 

him whom they pierced. 

38. And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple 

of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought 
Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: 
and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and 
took the body of Jesus. 



172 The Illuminated Faith 

39. And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came 

to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh 
and aloes, about an hundred pound weight. 

40. Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen 

clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews 
is to bury. 

41. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a 

garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, where- 
in was never man laid. 

42. There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews' 

preparation day ; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand. 



LESSON FORTY=NINE 

Through absolute obedience to the Divine Law, the Soul 
may be builded and become Conscious; and man is 
then become a Conscious Individualized Soul. More- 
over, through obedience, the body may be so purified 
that it becomes pure ^th and part of the Soul, so 
that where the Soul is, there may be the body also; 
because it has become the Soul. 

St. John 20:1-18. 

1. The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, 

when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth 
the stone taken away from the sepulchre. 
There was no longer any weight to hold the Soul down. 
The weight of the Soul is the body; and the weight of the 
body are the carnal desires and tendencies. When these 
are all removed, then does the body become light. It is 
purified, freed from all evil. Evil is the only weight that 
can hold the Soul to earth. When the evil is removed from 
the flesh, the flesh becomes light ; and all that is light goeth 
upward. 

2. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the 

other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 173 

them, They have taken away the Lord out of the 
sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid 
him. 

3. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and 

came to the sepulchre. 

4. So they ran both together : and the other disciple did out- 

run Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. 

5. And he stooped down, and looking in, saw the linen 

clothes lying; yet went he not in. 

6. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into 

the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie. 

7. And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with 

the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by 
itself. 

8. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first 

to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. 

9. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must 

rise again from the dead. 

10. Then the disciples went away again unto their own 

home. 

11. But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping : and 

as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the 
sepulchre, 

12. And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the 

head, and the other at the feet, where the body of 
Jesus had lain. 

13. And they say unto her. Woman, why weepest thou ? She 

saith unto them. Because they have taken away my 
Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. 

14. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, 

saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. 

15. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom 

seekest thou ? She, supposing him to be the gardener, 
saith unto him. Sir, if thou have borne him hence, 
tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take 
him away. 

16. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and 

saith unto him, Rabboni ; which is to say Master. 



174 The Illuminated Faith 

17. Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not : for I am not yet 

ascended to my Father : but go to my brethren, and 
say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your 
Father ; and to my God, and your God. 

18. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she 

had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these 
things unto her. 

It seems strange that this woman, who had been of ill re- 
pute, should first see the Christ after his resurrection. But 
it is not strange when we consider that from the very begin- 
ning she gave the dearest possession that she had to him — 
which is to say, she gave up all that she had been doing, all 
that had brought both pleasure and profit to the body, in 
order that she might follow him. 

The disciples gave up their homes and followed him wher- 
ever he went, and helped in the work ; but there was always 
something which caused them to doubt, and not to recog- 
nize fully the Christ. But with Mary Magdalene it was dif- 
ferent. From the first, from the time she made the change, 
she gave up everything. She had not a doubt, not a fear. 
She was a woman, with the intuition of a woman; and 
neither fear of ridicule nor death could change her. 

Before the awaking of the Soul comes, in that middle 
state when the desires of the flesh and of the self have been 
given up, just before the Arising of the Christ — which is 
to say, just before the awakening of the Soul — there is sor- 
row and weeping. For the body is as dead, and the Soul is 
not yet awake ; and we know not where we are. 

Then comes the awakening, and the Christ stands before 
us. The Soul has become Conscious and recognizes itself. 

It is like a sleep. We live ; but the faculties are asleep, 
we awaken; and for a moment we scarcely know where we 
are and who we are. It is a moment of doubt, a moment of 
non-entity. It is the same at the transition from the dead 
self to the arisen Christ. 

And now is the danger point. The Soul is not yet fully 
balanced, it has not yet fully ascended to the Father, nor 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 175 

received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, it is not yet fully 
cleansed; and there is great danger that it may slip back 
into the dead self and there meet destruction. 



LESSON FIFTY 

Through faith in the Divine Law will we do the will of the 
Divine Law; and, through obedience to the Divine 
Law, will we become the dispensers of the Divine 
Law; and therefore the Christ, which is the Son of 
God ; for Jesus said : ' ' Is it not written in your law, 
I said, Ye are gods ? ' ' 

St. John 20:19-31. 

19. Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the 

week, when the doors were shut where the disciples 
were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and 
stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be un- 
to you. 
The first day of the week — that is, the beginning of a 
new life. 

At the beginning of the new life there is always fear, the 
fear that the Jews, or the flesh, may be too strong, and 
cause us to turn back. But the awakening has come. Jesus, 
which is now the Christ, the Illuminated, Individualized 
Soul, stands before us. 

20. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his 

hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, 
when they saw the Lord. 
As long as man has to contend with the flesh, even though 
purified, there is still some doubt in him ; for such is man. 

21. Then said Jesus to them again. Peace be unto you: as 

my Father hath sent me, even so I sent you. 
With the assurance that the Soul lives, there comes peace; 



176 The Illuminated Faith 

for with that assurance comes the knowledge that the 
Father is in the temple and watches carefully over his own. 

22. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and 

said unto them. Receive ye the Holy Ghost. 
When the assurance is given us that we have found the 
Father, then does the Illumination of the Soul take place. 
It is the resurrection from the flesh which was dead and is 
now become part of the Christ. This Divine Illumination 
is the Holy Ghost, it is the Baptism of Fire, and comes up- 
on man like a breath. 

23. Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto 

them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are re- 
tained. 
Knowing the truth and having experienced the truth, we 
are now prepared to teach "the Way, the Truth, and the 
Life" to others. If they will obey the Divine Law as we 
teach them, then will they become free from sin, and from 
evil ; for they will transmute the desires of the flesh, whence 
comes all evil, into the desires which are from the Father. 
They that will not obey the Laws as we shall teach them, 
are not forgiven their sins, because they hold to them. Only 
according to their works shall it be unto them, only through 
obedience can they become free. 

24. But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not 

with them when Jesus came. 

25. The other disciples therefore said unto him. We have 

seen the Lord, But he said unto them. Except I shall 
see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my 
finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my 
hands into his side, I will not believe. 
Faith, or mere belief, in that which others teach us can- 
not bring salvation to us. Only as we ourselves live in har- 
mony with the Divine Law and thereby transmute the flesh 
into a living Soul; only as we pass through the death of 
the self, and the resurrection of the Christ, can we know the 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 177 

Christ. Faith is not in itself Regeneration ; but the works 
of faith bring Regeneration, which is the Salvation of the 
Soul. 

26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, 
and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors 
being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace 
be unto you. 

27. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and 

behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and 
thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but be- 
lieving. 

28. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and 

my Master. 
Only after Thomas had shut the door of the self and had 
himself lived in harmony with the Divine Law and had ex- 
perienced the Divine Illumination, could he believe; and 
then he knew. 

29. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen 

me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have 

not seen, and yet have believed. 
Those who believe without having seen the Christ will do 
the works of the Christ. If they do this, then truly are they 
blessed. They will come to be like him and then they will 
see him; for to do the will of the Father is to become like 
the Father. 

30. And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence 

of his disciples, which are not written in this book : 

31. But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus 

is the Christ, the Son of God ; and that believing ye 

might have life through his name. 
Believing, you will do the works that Jesus did, and will 
have life eternal ; because through your works will you be- 
come the Christ. 



12 



178 The Illuminated Faith 



LESSON FIFTY=ONE 

When we obey the Divine Law, we will be able to manifest 
the works of the Father. As we manifest the Father, 
so will we draw others unto us that we may teach 
them the Law and help them to become free from 
sin, and as they become free from evil, they will 
know the Father. 

St. John 21 :l-25. 

1. After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the dis- 

ciples at the sea of Tiberias ; and on this wise shewed 
he himself. 

2. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called 

Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the 
sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. 

3. Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say 

unto him. We also go with thee. They went forth, 
and entered into a ship immediately ; and that night 
they caught nothing. 

4. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the 

shore : but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. 

5. Then Jesus saith unto them. Children, have ye any 

meat? they answered him. No. 

6. And he said unto them. Cast the net on the right side 

of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, 
and now they were not able to draw it for the multi- 
tude of fishes. 
He who tries to accomplish anything without considering 
the Divine Law may succeed for a time ; but his success is 
not lasting. But, if he works in harmony with the Divine 
Law, then will he find lasting success. 

7. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto 

Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard 
that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 179 

him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into 
the sea. 

8. And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they 

were not far from land, but as it were two hundred 
cubits, ) dragging the net with fishes. 

9. As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire 

of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread. 

10. Jesus saith unto them. Bring of the fish which ye have 

now caught. 

11. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of 

great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three : and for 
all there were so many, yet was not the net broken. 

12. Jesus saith unto them. Come and dine. And none of 

the disciples durst ask him. Who art thou? knowing 
that it was the Lord. 

13. Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, 

and fish likewise. 

14. This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself 

to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead. 

15. So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, 

Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these ? 
He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I 
love thee. He saith unto him. Feed my lambs. 

16. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of 

Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him. Yea, 
Lord ; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto 
him, Feed my sheep. 

17. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, 

lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said 

unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he 

said unto him. Lord, thou knowest all things; thou 

knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed 

my sheep. 

When we love the good, we will do the will of the Divine 

Law ; for it is the word of the Father who is our God. We 

cannot love God and disobey the Law, and in this is the 

judgment; for he who loves God will do the Will of God, 

while he who loves not the Law will do the will of the flesh. 



180 The Illuminated Faith 

18. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, 

thou girdest thyself, and walkest whither thou 
wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt 
stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, 
and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. 

19. This spake he, signifying by what death he should glori- 

fy God. And when he had spoken this, he saith un- 
to Peter, Follow me. 

20. Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom 

Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his 
breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that be- 
trayeth thee ? 

21. Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall 

this man do ? 

22. Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, 

what is that to thee ? follow thou me. 

If we love the Father we will do his will. "We will do his 
works ; for we must follow him. To follow him means that 
we must follow him in Ms works, we must do the works that 
he does. 

It does not concern us what another may do. Our duty is 
to follow the guidance that is for ourselves, and to see to it 
that we are justified in our works. 

We are responsible only for ourselves. We must do our 
duty to ourselves and to others; and it is not given us to 
judge another since we can know the heart of no man. 

23. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that 

that disciple should not die : yet Jesus said not unto 
him. He shall not die ; but. If I will that he tarry till 
I come, what is that to thee? 

24. This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and 

wrote these things : and we know that his testimony 
is true. 

25. And there are also many other things which Jesus did, 

the which, if they should be written every one, I sup- 
pose that even the world itself could not contain the 
books that should be written. Amen. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 181 



LESSON FIFTY-TWO 

Esoteric Interpretation of the Crucifixion as an Historic 
Event in the Life of Jesus. 

Ever since the world began, when the time was ripe for a 
new leader or a new Messiah, a leader or a Messiah has 
come forth. In each case, he has comprehended conditions 
at a glance, has taken hold of them, and tried to change 
them for the better. Thus, we find that, when a leader of 
men is necessary, forward steps a man, one who may not 
seem to have been prepared previoulsy, and leads on to 
victory. 

A cycle ago, at the beginning of the Christian era, condi- 
tions had come to such a pass that few things were regarded 
sacred, and few of the deeper truths were understood by 
recognized leaders in the religious world. The Pharisees 
and scribes, men then in power, although having the laws of 
Moses, refused to live according to them. Consequently, 
their lives and characters did not personify the true teach- 
ings. They were as blind leaders of the blind ; and religion 
was a form, merely a conventionality. Either the world 
must have a new leader and a true advocate of the Divine 
Law or it would drop into hopeless materialism, a condition 
that has no respect for the laws of God, morality, honor, or 
anything else that makes man different from the beast. 

The prophets had prophesied that a great teacher or Mes- 
siah would come, one who not only should understand the 
Law, but should live it, and therefore manifest it to the 
world. The people therefore looked forward to the coming 
of such a teacher. In due time, in accordance with the 
' ' law of demand and supply, ' ' a great Soul was born to the 
one prepared to give birth to him. 

This child, being born under proper conditions, was 
placed with the proper people for instructions. Among a 
class of people then called Essenes, he was taught the Di- 
vine Law. The instructions and the training to which he 



182 The Illuminated Faith 

was subjected, required him to live according to the Law, 
not according to the letter of it only, but according to the 
spirit as well. He had to comply with the divine standards 
as they pertain to relations with mankind, usually thought 
of as ethical, or moral, codes. But, what is of even greater 
importance, he made application of the Law in another way, 
namely: he made conscious, deliberate, intelligent effort to 
develop the Divine Spark of a Soul within his nature (al- 
ready highly developed and unfolded) that it might attain 
to full and complete Individualized Soul Consciousness, or 
Christhood. 

After Jesus had partly accomplished this, it was time for 
him to go among the people and there, through actual work 
and service, to finish the development of his Soul so that 
he should in truth become the Christ, and exemplify to hu- 
manity the Christ Potency as the Saviour of the world. We 
learn of his ministry through the records left us: how he 
went about doing good ; how he taught men ' ' the way, the 
truth, and the life;" and how he healed them and taught 
them that it was for his true and faithful followers to have 
like power, and even greater. 

Through continual obedience to the Divine Law, he more 
and more purified the flesh, until his nature was no longer 
subject to the desires of the flesh or to earthly tendencies. 
Through habitual compliance with the law of positive, con- 
structive thought ; through right thinking and right living 
in every department of life ; through constant obedience to 
the Law of Love and Forgiveness, even the elements of his 
body were being constantly transmuted into qualities of 
Soul. Even the very elements of the body were becoming 
pure JEth. 

As this process of purification continued, he gained more 
and more power, and could do greater works. But, as he 
did greater works, so was the wrath of those in power 
turned against him more and more. Religious leaders con- 
sidered that there was but one way to save their standing 
and influence, and that was by the death of him who was 
gradually taking the people away from them. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 183 

To this end did they scheme. Jesus knew this. But he 
understood the Divine Law, he realized that they could do 
him no real harm. He understood the possibility of spirit- 
ualizing, or JSthizing, the body — a truth in which he had 
thoroughly trained himself under the guidance of the Law 
itself. He knew that, if the body was sufficiently purified, 
and if the powers of body and mind had been used faith- 
fully to build an Immortal Soul, efforts of others to take his 
life would be futile. They might put him through some- 
thing that resembled death; but he realized that the Con- 
scious Soul within, which was the true power of his uni- 
verse, would lose consciousness only for the moment. He 
knew that he would be able to raise up the body since it was 
really become part of the Soul. He knew that true Master- 
ship enables one to call together the disintegrated and scat- 
tered elements of the body, if need be ; for, through a pro- 
longed process of purification, they become pure ^th 
essences. 

This knowledge, this consciousness, this realization, pre- 
served Jesus in tranquility of Soul, even when the narrow- 
minded rulers were plotting to take his life. 

What Jesus foresaw as his experience, actually took 
place. The climax of opposition that resulted in the cruci- 
fixion, became for Jesus the climax of glorification. Though 
crucified, dead, and buried, his body was only passing 
through the final fires of purification. It stood the test. 
The elements composing the body had passed from the 
realm of the physical to the realm of the ^thic, or the 
ethereal. They had become pure ^th. Only for the mo- 
ment of transition, did the Soul lose consciousness. Had 
the body been mere physical substance, had it still contained 
carnal elements, he could not have raised it. But there was 
nothing carnal remaining. The earth principle had been 
completely transmuted into qualities of ^th, or Soul. Its 
essences had been thoroughly transmuted into qualities 
finer, lighter, purer, and more ethereal than the physical; 
consequently, the body was not of the earth. Through the 
process of purification, it had become lighter than the earth 



184 The Illuminated Faith 

so that he could take it up and use it at will. It is recog- 
nized as a chemical law that only that which is as heavy as 
the earth can be held to the earth; that which is lighter 
tends upward, continuing to go upward according to its 
lightness — that is, according to its spirituality, or better, its 
souluality. The lightness and the purity and the fineness of 
the essences composing the body make them submissive and 
obedient to a call or command from the Soul that has been 
consciously using them as a vehicle on the earth plane. 

We are told that Elijah "ascended to heaven in a chariot 
of fire." "What was this chariot of fire? What, but the 
spiritualized essences of a purified body ? What, but ^thic 
substance? What can be a chariot of fire other than the 
cloud, or the aura, of pure ^th that envelopes the Soul 
that has attained Christhood and complete Mastership. This, 
the climax of Illumination! This, the goal of Christhood, 
to ascend to the Father in a chariot of fire ! This, the ulti- 
mate end and aim of the Great Work — transmutation of the 
gross and the earthly into the fiery cloud of purity and di- 
vinity ! 

When Mary Magdalene first recognized the risen Christ, 
he said unto her : ' ' Touch me not ; for I am not yet ascended 
unto my Father. ' ' Why did he say, ' ' Touch me not ' ' ? Be- 
cause his newly arisen body, like a battery freshly charged 
with electricity, was alive with pure ^th Fire. To touch it 
at that moment would have incurred danger, as there is 
danger in touching a live electric wire. As the risen Master 
mingled among earth conditions, his body became enveloped 
in grosser elements w^hich served as a shell of protection — 
a protection to bodies of inferior development with which 
lie came in contact on the human plane before his final 
ascension to the Father. 

To the many, these deeply esoteric truths are veiled ; for 
the undeveloped soul cannot comprehend them. But, to the 
Illumined Soul, they throb with life and power. Eemem- 
ber, esoteric truth reveals itself to the understanding in 
proportion as the Soul itself has become a dynamic center 
of life and power. 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 185 

Thus, Jesus exemplified full and complete Mastership. 
We are to accept it as an historic fact that he was crucified, 
that he literally passed through the transition called death, 
and that his body was buried in the tomb. Furthermore, 
we are to accept it as an historic fact that he literally and 
truly raised his body from the dead and that he took it up 
again as a vehicle of communication among men. Further 
still, we are to accept it as a fact that Jesus thus demon- 
strated to the world a power that belongs potentially to all 
men, and that the possibility of full and complete Master- 
ship is given to all. Such Mastership is offered to all alike 
— mastery over the self, mastery over one's own thoughts 
and feelings and words and deeds, a mastery that insures 
such purity and nobility of thought and motive that the 
earth principle may be transmuted into pure ^th. 

A mastery that interferes with the freedom of other lives 
is promised to no one. Jesus did nothing to prevent the 
taunts and the mockery of onlookers; but he manifested 
Christhood and true Mastership in the tenderness and the 
compassion that enabled him to say : ' ' Father, forgive them, 
for they know not what they do. " A charlatan, or a mere 
wonder-worker, might have exercised an abnormal and per- 
verted will-power to coerce or to restrain or to prevent the 
jeers and the taunts of disbelievers. The superiority of 
the Christ is seen in the fact that, in the midst of mockery, 
he preserved a tranquility of Soul that enabled him to ' ' lay 
down the body and to take it up again. ' ' 

All this Jesus did, not to demonstrate a power reserved 
for him alone among mortals, but to prove and to illustrate 
to the world the power that belongs by divine right to man- 
kind generally. This he could do only because he had been 
scrupulously obedient, even in minutest details, to the Di- 
vine Law of his own Being. This he could do because, in 
small things as well as in great, he had been obedient to 
the Law of Love. 

Let each one who reads these lines, ponder well their im- 
port, and seek to understand the Christie Law of his own 



186 The Illuminated Faith 

Inner Being ; and, in so far as he understands the Law, let 
him obey. Thus will the light come to him. Thus will the 
Christ Flame radiate its warmth of love and its light of un- 
derstanding throughout his Soul. 



LESSON FIFTY-THREE 

Esoteric Interpretation of the Crucifixion as it concerns 
Mankind generally. 

Man is placed on earth through his earth parents. His 
parents give him a body. God gives him the breath of life, 
which is called the spirit. God also places within him at 
birth a tiny spark, or seed, of the divine nature. This, the 
divine spark of a soul, is a part of God. It belongs to God 
so long as man does not develop it or make use of it. Man 
also has a mind ; but the mind is the result of the combina- 
tion of body, spirit, and the divine spark of a soul. It is 
not immortal, or eternal, as an entity. Accurately speak- 
ing, the mind is the workman that is to build a house, the 
Immortal Soul. It is at liberty, however, to build on the 
sands or upon a rock. 

The mind of man receives impressions from two sides, 
the soulual and the fleshly. Through association with people 
and ideas, it becomes awakened to the Divine Law in its 
ethical and moral aspects and in its standards of right and 
justice and fair dealing in the practical affairs of life. On 
the other side, it is influenced and actuated by impressions 
and desires that originate in the flesh and in the fleshly 
personality. This dual receiving of impressions gives man 
a dual nature, so to speak, and leads to a conflict within 
himself. 

The desires of the flesh have the better of the conflict in 
the beginning, because they always pertain to things that 
can be seen and felt and heard. Therefore, through the 
dominant inclinations of the flesh and of the fleshly per- 
sonality, it is said that man is following the flesh. The ' ' di- 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 187 

vine urge ' ' within is quickened and active to an extent, and 
seems to beckon to higher and better things; yet it cannot 
point to anything tangible or outwardly visible that it de- 
sires. Therefore, the carnal man is prone to consider the 
promptings of ''the divine urge" as foolish. These prompt- 
ings from two sides result in a discordant nature, and man 
is in the unhappy state of inner turmoil and unrest. He is 
uncertain which voice to believe, and which to follow. This 
is carnal man. The more sensual he is, the less he recog- 
nizes the divine promptings within silently beckoning him 
to nobler and purer and more profitable things. Indeed, it 
is possible for him to give the lower tendencies such suprem- 
acy in his nature and to live such an ignoble life that ' ' the 
divine urge ' ' is lost to view or covered up altogether. But 
of this point nothing more need be said here. 

To follow the other possibility, the possibility of giving 
supremacy to the soulual side of his nature : the more man 
heeds the warning and the guidance of the inner prompting, 
the more he comes to realize that fleshly and perishable 
things have for him no sure help, no sure reward. Through 
suffering, losses, sorrow, illness, he comes more and more 
to seek help and comfort and guidance from the Within, the 
Divine Center, or from some superior Pov\^er to which he 
prays (for he may not yet have recognized that the superior 
power to which he prays has its center within his own be- 
ing). He looks more and more beyond temporal interests 
for light and solace and knowledge, until finally his mind is 
fully convinced of the fact that all superior and satisfying 
interests are connected with the Soul and with the Inner 
Light. He sees that the flesh is perishable; that the mind 
is perishable ; that the Soul is the only feature of his exist- 
ence that possesses the possibilities of eternal life. As these 
truths dawn on him more and more clearly, he tries more 
and more to live in harmony with them. 

In time, he comes to see that the standards of right and 
justice and love in the world of activities are but one aspect 
of the Divine Law— the Law of the universe. Hitherto, he 
has been considering ethics and morals and justice and un- 



188 The Illuminated Faith 

selfishness and right living in relations with men as the only 
aspect, the only requirement, of the Divine Law. Gradu- 
ally, it may be very gradually, the truth dawns on him that 
correct morals and perfect ethics can never merely of them- 
selves satisfy the deeper cravings of his nature. 

The deepening of his desire for inner victory, for right 
thinking and right feeling ; the craving for an understand- 
ing of the deeper things of life ; the longing to understand 
the Divine Law in its esoteric sense; the craving for har- 
mony within himself — these things lead him to earnest 
search and eager investigation. Prejudice after prejudice 
falls away. Opinions, hitherto settled and pronounced, lose 
their hold upon him ; and his nature becomes more and more 
open to the deeper things of the Law. 

But, as the desire for deeper and truer knowledge in- 
creases; as the desire for a truer and a purer thought-vic- 
tory deepens; as the longing for right thinking and right 
feeling intensifies; so, also, does the conflict in his nature 
deepen and increase and intensify. The seriousness of the 
task of overcoming the undesirable tendencies of his own 
inner, hidden thought kingdom leads him more earnestly to 
seek * * the way, the truth, and the life ' ' whereby he may be 
enabled to gain the superior mastery he so much desires. To 
understand ' ' the way, the truth, and the life ' ' that underlie 
moral and ethical standards of right living in relations with 
men — one aspect of the Divine Law — is not so difficult. But 
to determine "the way, the truth, and the life" whereby 
one may establish the Christ Ideal as an ever-present vital- 
izing principle and dynamic force in one's own interior 
thought world — another aspect of the Divine Law — this is 
more difficult. But, if he persists in heeding the light that 
is already his, and in obeying the Law as he already under- 
stands it, fuller and fuller light and a clearer and still 
clearer knowledge of the Law become his. 

Eventually, he comes to see something very specific and 
definite in Jesus 's words : * ' I am the way, the truth, and the 
life." He sees that, in order to know "the truth" that 
sets one free from sin and error of thought; in order to 



Mystical Interpretation of St. John 189 

know ' ' the mode of life ' ' that is an exponent of the Divine 
Law; in order to know ''the way" of salvation, he must 
develop the Christ of his own being, he must seek the king- 
dom of heaven within. 

He may have long been convinced that the Christ poten- 
tiality is in every man ; that the divine spark of a soul is in 
every human creature ; that the kingdom of heaven is latent 
in every being. For these principles are one feature of the 
Divine Law. But now he becomes convinced that there is a 
still deeper aspect even of the esoteric features of the Di- 
vine Law, namely: that there comes a time in man's experi- 
ence when he must make definite, specific application of the 
Law in developing the Christ potentiality within his own 



There are divine laws, (often called natural laws, prop- 
erly so-called, too) which underlie nature's forces, fire, air, 
water, magnetism, electricity. Man may gain practical 
knowledge of these laws, so that he may harness and guide 
and control, and make use of them for his own good. Like- 
wise, there are divine laws (often called psychological prin- 
ciples, properly so-called, too) which underlie the invisible 
forces of man 's interior kingdom, his ' ' kingdom of heaven. ' ' 
Furthermore, it is possible for man to gain a practical 
knowledge of these laws and principles; it is possible for 
him, through accurate knowledge of the creative functions 
of thought and through obedience to the divine standards of 
thought mastery, to harness and to guide and to control, 
and to make practical use of, the finer forces of his own in- 
terior kingdom, his own universe. 

There comes a time in his experience when man cannot, 
be satisfied ; he cannot find peace and harmony within him- 
self, until he learns to make practical application of the Di- 
vine Law in fanning the spark of divinity in his own nature 
into an all-consuming Flame of Christ Potency. The laws 
and the principles underlying the feeding and the nurtur- 
ing of the Christ Flame are what Jesus referred to as the 
esoteric significance of ''the way, the truth, and the life." 
"The way" involves a systematic course of self-training 



190 The Illuminated Faith 

and self-discipline; ''the truth" involves a comprehensive, 
ever-expanding knowledge of the Divine Law, the Christie 
Interpretation; ''the life" involves an intelligent system 
or mode of simple, healthful living^ — all conducive to de- 
veloping a conscious, dynamic, vitalizing Christ Flame, or 
Individualized Soul Consciousness. 

The mind of man thus becomes thoroughly and fully 
awakened to the sacred mission of directing its own creative 
powers toward fanning and feeding the fire of the soul, 
which is already partially awakened and quickened to ac- 
tivity and already partially illuminated. He must purify, 
cleanse, and refine the desires of the heart ; he must refuse 
to gratify the cravings of a selfish personality ; he must en- 
courage and cultivate the qualities both of strength and of 
grace that represent the Christ Ideal. This process of trans- 
muting lower tendencies into higher; of removing the dross 
and the poisonous taints of carnality by subjecting them to 
the consuming Flame of the Christ Love; of refining the 
coarser, heavier vibrations of his nature ; of denying the un- 
worthy and unnecessary desires of the flesh, and of replac- 
ing them with the purer desires of the Soul — this process 
is a Crucifixion. From this point of view, the crucifixion is 
not an instantaneous act, but a prolonged process. 

It is a period often attended by sorrow and suffering. 
But the mind that is fully aroused to its mission will not 
give up; and with every victory comes greater ' strength ; 
with every conquest comes renewed courage. This process 
continues and the Soul grows apace, and finally attains con- 
sciousness of itself and of the Infinite. The personality, 
which represents the carnal man, is transmuted into the 
Individuality, which represents the Soulual Man. Thus in 
conscious experience man attains Christhood. 

But the culminating crisis of the crucifixion, neverthe- 
less, is yet to be reached. The body, which has been trans- 
muted, must go through the final fire ; and this is the death 
of all that remains of the carnal body. There is a moment 
of unconsciousness, the body is dead, it is buried, it is un- 
conscious. And now arises the Soul ; and, through its aris- 



Mystical Interpretation op St. John 191 

ing, it is giorified. It has been baptized with the H'oly 
Ghost as with Fire. It is the Son of the living God. It 
knows the Father and is at one with the Father. 

This is the climax of Illumination. This is the Resurrec- 
tion that follows the final crucifixion and burial. This is 
the end and the goal of the Great Work. This is the tri- 
umph of Love in human experience. The Christ Flame is 
the Flame of Universal Love. John, the Philosopher of 
Love, reveals in his Gospel the power of Love to redeem the 
soul of man from the entanglements of materiality in which 
it has become involved by reason of its earthly pilgrimage. 
More than this, he reveals the power of Love to lay down 
the body and to raise it up again; the power of Love to 
glorify the sting of death ; the power of Love to demonstrate 
that death is swallowed up in victory. 

''Behold what love, what boundless love, the Father hath 
bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God. ' ' 



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